I'm Just a Half Vampire
by Arra Lindemann
Summary: A woman and her friend go to the Cirque Du Freak, the rest is Destiny ;)
1. Introduction

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

Introduction

Hi, my name is Anna and I'm a half vampire. I would not expect you to believe me but it is the truth, vampires exist and this is the story of how I became a vampire.

I was born human like everybody else on the planet, I went to school, I had friends and then after taking some time out for a couple of years to work and travel I started college in the Autumn.

If this were a made up horror story then it would have started on a dark night with owls hooting and the moon shining like a beacon but this is a real story so I have to start it from where it actually began, it began in the college dormatories...


	2. Chapter 1

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 1:**

I was in the girls' dormitory at college and I wasn't feeling well. I had left my class early because I was feeling so sick. I crawled into bed and that is when my best friend came to see if I was OK.

"Anna, are you alright?" my best friend Stephanie asked.

"No, I feel dreadful. I think I've picked up a bug of some kind." I replied quietly. I really was feeling like crap.

"Oh, that's not good. We've got tests coming up, you can't revise if you're sick." Stephanie answered.

"I realise that, I need to rest. Maybe I'll be better after I've slept." I suggested.

"Maybe, we've got maths next and Mr Simms is off so Mr Davies is going to be covering our maths lesson." Stephanie said with a sly smile.

"No, not Mr Davies again. We've had him twice today already." I complained.

"He's hot, what's your problem?" Stephanie asked.

"Eww, he's so not my type. You've got a screw loose if you think that Mr Davies is attractive." I stated.

"I think he's gorgeous personally. In fact he's so sexy I'm going to class early to get a front row seat." Stephanie replied before she left the dormitory, I stayed in bed because I wasn't well enough to attend class.

A couple of hours later my other friend Sarah came to see me, she seemed excited about something and when I saw her she was waving a piece of paper around in the air happily.

"What's that you've got in your hand?" I enquired curiously,

"Oh it is just a flier for a freak show, some guy handed it to me last night." Sarah replied as she handed me the piece of paper.

On the flier in coloured writing was a list of acts and at the bottom it told you where to get tickets and how much they were.

"I'll go if you'll come with me." I said after I had finished reading the flier.

"Count me in, it'll be fun." Sarah answered.

"Right that's settled then, we're going." I replied decisively.

Had I known at this point what was going to take place I never would have gone to the freak show but hindsight is a wonderful thing...

A couple of days later I was feeling much better so I decided that my friend and I would be going to the freak show. Tonight was the last show in our neighbourhood so we had to go, I sent her out to buy the tickets as she was the one who had the flier and she knew where the tickets were being sold.

When my friend returned and handed me my ticket I got a funny feeling in my body, it felt hot like fire but it was buzzing as if it were electrified. I ignored the sensations and put it down to the fact that I wasn't completely over the bug that I had caught.

"This show sounds awesome, I think that we'll have a great time watching it but what should I wear?" I asked one of my friends.

"Wear your Gothic clothing, freak shows often attract Goths so you'll fit right in." my friend replied.

"That is a good point, my red velvet outfit will be pefect." I answered as I went to fetch it out of my wardrobe.

Had I known then how much one of the freak show performers liked red attire I would have worn another colour but at the time I was just happy to be going out for the evening, my assignments were mounting up and I had a lot of paperwork to get done but after writing four essays I was due a break and the freak show sounded like an ideal way to unwind.

"Are you driving to the venue or are we walking?" I asked curiously.

"Well the venue has no parking near to it so we'll have to walk there. We could take the bus and then walk around the block from the bus terminal, it is about ten minutes away from the number two bus stop." Sarah explained.

"Well the bus sounds like the best option to me, are you ready to go?" I enquired.

"Yes, all I have to do is grab my coat and purse and then we're good to go." Sarah remarked.

We left our dormitory and then we left the college campus, as it was a Friday night lots of students were coming and going. Age wise we were both in our mid twenties, nobody could stop us from going to the freak show and most freak shows are for over eighteens anyway so we were perfectly entitled to go to the show and enjoy ourselves.

Secretly I was hoping to sneak backstage and meet some of the performers, I was going to ask for a job at the show such as selling souvineers or handing out fliers to people. Students never have a lot of money so any spare income would be a welcome bonus. I didn't tell Sarah about my plans because she was a big mouth and it had nothing to do with her.

We walked up the steps to the entrance of the old cinema where the show was taking place, a man with a top hat and very dark eyes greeted us before he checked our tickets. He took them from us and he ate both of our tickets whilst we were standing there watching him.

"They must be made of rice paper or something." I said to Sarah who looked bemused after watching the man eat her ticket as if it were a toffee.

"I guess so, either that or it was an illusion. This is a freak show after all." Sarah added.

"It is time to take your seats ladies, the show is about to begin." the man told us so we walked through the net curtains and sat down whilst we waited for the show to commence.

"Ladies and gentlemen good evening and welcome to the show, our job is to entertain you so sit back, relax and watch our artists perform some of the most amazing things you've ever seen." announced the man who had taken our tickets.

"This is going to be good." I said in a whisper to Sarah who was munching her way though a bag of pick n' mix sweets.

"Our first act tonight is Mr Alexander Ribs, he will be playing some music for you, as this is a freak show he'll be playing a rather odd instrument." the man explained, he then left the stage in a puff of purple smoke. When the smoke cleared a very thin man was standing upon the stage. He had shorts on and he was holding a pair of drumsticks but there were no visible instruments on the stage.

"Ladies and gentlemen I'll be playing some tunes for you tonight, please give me a moment or two because I need to tune my instruments first." Alexander Ribs announced to all of us.

Alexander then began to hit his ribs, as he did so different sounds came out of his mouth. The audience were laughing because it sounded so odd, a man was playing his ribs like a xylophone. After a few practice notes Alexander Ribs began to sing for us whilst playing his ribs at the same time, he was rather good and although it seemed comical to watch he could actually sing rather well. I enjoyed watching him perform.

Alexander Ribs finished his last song, he bowed and then the next act came on. This was a very different act.

"Hello, my name is Evra Von and this is my snake. We don't have an act as such we just walk though the audience and let you say hello to us both, this is a hands-on experience so if you wish to hold the snake then feel free or if you just want to stroke her then go ahead but only one person at a time or she'll get scared." Evra Von explained as he stepped off of the stage and walked towards us, I was in the front row with Sarah so we got to see the snake and Evra up close. Evra had scales and I'm not even joking, it was either very clever make-up or he was part snake also, he even had slits for eyes and they were yellow which matched his long, yellow-green hair.

"Would you ladies care to hold the snake?" Evra asked us.

"Yeah I'd like to, what do I do?" I asked curiously.

"If you stand up I'll drape her around your shoulders like a scarf, she's quite harmless I promise." Evra replied as I slowly stood up.

"Wow she's beautiful, I love her markings." I said as I looked at my serpentine scarf.

"She's a ball python, she eats mice and things like that. You can touch her if you wish." Evra said.

I slowly placed my hand on the snake's body and I felt her cool scales. She was smooth to the touch and not slimy at all.

"May I ask what the deal is with yourself? Are you wearing make-up or something? It looks awesome." I queried.

"No, this is my real skin. I am part snake, I was born this way and that is how I came to join the freak show." Evra answered as he retrieved his pet from around my neck.

"Thanks for letting me hold her, she's so cool." I said as Evra moved onto the next row of people but he nodded in acknowledgment when he heard my thanks.

When Evra had finished walking through the audience he went back up onto the stage, bowed and left. The next act came on and this act was the one that I had been looking forward to the most, it was Mr Crepsley and his performing spider Madam Octa. Even the idea of a performing spider had me intrigued.

Mr Crepsley came onto the stage, he bowed to us and then he placed a small wooden cage onto a table, he produced some kind of tin whistle from his pocket and he began to play an unusual tune. The spider emerged from the wooden cage and it began to climb up Mr Crepsley's free arm, it sat on his head like a hat for a few minutes before it climbed back down onto the table and started lifting up objects with its two front legs. After a few minutes Mr Crepsley set up some equipment and his spider then started to do some gymnastics, after that Mr Crepsley pulled out a mini dinner tray with plates, a cup, some cutlery and some salt and pepper pots. His spider ate the meal as if it were a human, it was incredible to watch. I could hardly believe what I was seeing, I thought it was an illusion. My eyes were glued to the stage, I couldn't wait to see what was coming next from Mr Crepsley and his spider.

A goat was led onto the stage by some people who were wearing blue robes, Mr Crepsley then spoke to us.

"It is not true that all tarantulas are poisonous, some are harmless however some like my spider are lethal. One bite from my spider means certain death to the person or animal that she bites for there is no antidote. Please ladies and gentlemen stay in your seats and make no noise for the next part of the show, if you do make any noises then something could go horribly wrong."

Then Mr Crepsley picked up his tin whistle (although he referred to it as a flute) and he began to play a new tune. Madam Octa began to crawl across the table and then she paused at the goat's neck, one short blast from Mr Crepsley was all she needed to hear before she bared her fangs and bit the goat, it collapsed on the ground bleating for a few moments then with another short note from Mr Crepsley's flute Madam Octa bit the goat again, it stopped bleating and lay still. It was dead.

After the goat had died the spider crawled up the table leg and onto Mr Crepsley's chest, she continued to crawl upwards until she paused at Mr Crepsley's mouth, she then began to go in and out of it strangely until I could just make out some white threads, she was spinning a web inside Mr Crepsley's mouth. When she was finished she crawled back into her wooden cage and Mr Crepsley ate the web.

"Delicious, there is nothing tastier than a fresh spider web. They are a treat where I come from." Mr Crepsley announced to the audience before he bowed, picked up the now locked cage and left the stage. That was the end of his act and it had been absolutely mind blowing to watch, I couldn't decide if it had actually happened or if it was very well done puppetry.

"That was beyond words." I said to Sarah during the interval.

"It was pretty cool, I loved the snake." Sarah remarked.

"How on Earth can anybody train a spider to do such things? As for Evra Von is it even scientifically possible for a human to be born like him?" I asked.

"I haven't got a clue but it was well worth paying to come here, I wonder who or what will be up next." Sarah replied in answer to my questions.

"You'll have to excuse me, I need to find the toilet before the second half starts." I said to Sarah, in reality I was going to look for the backstage area and find out for myself what the truth was. Little did I know that my curiosity would land me in a lot of trouble...

I left the main auditorium and I went back through the net curtains that I had walked past previously, I saw that there was a door and I hadn't noticed it before so I approached it and I instinctively knocked but no there was no reply. I cautiously turned the handle and the door creaked before it swung open. I didn't know where the door led to but I had a feeling that I was about to find out. I found myself standing in a long corridor so I followed it to the end and at the end of the corridor were several doors, each one had a name on it so I read some of them to myself. I noticed that the names on the doors matched the names of some of the performers, had I found their dressing rooms? I nervously walked along until I saw a door labelled "Toilet" so I entered the toilet and when I was done I washed my hands. I was about to head back to the auditorium when I heard voices, I exited the toilet and as I was making my way back to the auditorium I was stopped in my tracks by Mr Crepsley, he looked annoyed to say the least.

"What are you doing back here? This area is for performers only." Mr Crepsley snapped.

"I'm sorry, I got lost. I was looking for the toilets and I found this one so I used it, there were no signs that said performers only." I explained.

"Be that as it may you should not be here, leave now and go back to your seat." Mr Crepsley ordered.

"Don't worry, I wouldn't stick around in this cold corridor even if you paid me to. You should learn how to speak to others with some respect." I chastised Mr Crepsley.

"You should learn not to trespass into areas where you are not meant to be, it is dangerous back here. Supposing my spider was loose and she bit you, you would die. You saw what she did to the goat." Mr Crepsley answered back, he sounded angry.

"Like I said I was looking for the toilet and I found this one, I'm going back to my seat. Thanks for ruining my evening, I was happy until you came along and started having a go at me for making a genuine mistake, I didn't mean to go the wrong way." I replied as I shook my hair and stormed off back to my seat.

The next performer came on just as I sat down, he was huge and his name was Rhamus Twobellies. His skill was eating absolutely anything and then he was able to bring it back up again as if he hadn't even swallowed it. There was a table that two ladies wheeled onto the stage, they removed the cloth that was covering it to reveal a large quantity of food. There were all kinds of things on display, Rhamus ate the whole lot including the plates and the cutlery in under five minutes and I couldn't believe what I was seeing, at the end of Rhamus's display he wiped his mouth and then he burped loudly.

"That was nice but I could have done with more dessert." Rhamus said to the audience as he stood up and left the stage. The ladies came back and they wheeled the table away ready for the next act to come on and do their thing.

The next two performers were twin contortionists named Sive and Seersa, they were able to twist their bodies around one another and perform acrobatic stunts just like gymnasts do. They had an outstanding level of flexibility. I could barely touch my toes but they could lean backwards and touch their heels. I enjoyed watching them perform and I didn't have to puzzle over how they did their tricks either, it was clear to me that they were double jointed.

The final three acts were the most perplexing, a woman known as Truska was able to grow a beard at will and suck it back into her face again. I put it down to another optical illusion, then there was another lady named Gertha Teeth who could bite through a steel bar, I thought the bar was fake or specially designed. Finally we had a man except he wasn't exactly human he was very hairy and he was in a cage; he was called the Wolf Man. I stroked his hair, it was spiky and very tough to the touch. He smelt bad too like burnt rubber and decaying flesh which made me feel queasy. He was hypnotised and led through the crowd and then back up onto the stage where he was returned to his cage. That was the end of the show but for me it was the start of a living nightmare...

After the show was over Sarah and I went back to the bus station, her plan was to catch the bus back to the college campus and go to bed. I however had other ideas so I made my excuses and I left, I headed straight back to the cinema and back to where I had been earlier. I went to the dressing rooms where the performers were likely to be after they were done with their performances. I didn't exactly have a plan I was just looking for the man who had taken my ticket as he seemed to be in charge of the show.

I knocked on one of the doors, I didn't get an answer straight away but then the door opened and Evra Von was standing infront of me.

"Can I help you?" Evra asked, he seemed nervous.

"Yes, I am looking for the tall man who ate my ticket. Do you know where he is?" I enquired,

"Oh you mean Mr Tall, he's in his trailer out the back. I'll take you to him." Evra said and he led me to Mr Tall's trailer. (He was aptly named)

"That's his trailer just knock on the door and he'll sort you out with whatever you need. I'm going to bed now." Evra said, he had a thick American accent.

"Oh OK then, thanks Evra." I replied, Evra smiled at me and disappeared back to his dressing room or wherever it was that he slept.

I knocked on the door and Mr Tall answered it, he was wearing a dressing gown and slippers.

"I'm sorry to disturb you but can we talk?" I asked nervously.

"Of course, come in." Mr Tall said as he helped me into his trailer. It was very nice, there were shelves with ornaments on them and all kinds of other unusual things were set up on display.

"How can I be of service?" Mr Tall asked politely.

"Well first of all let me congratulate you on an amazing show. I couldn't believe some of what I saw. I mean that spider was incredible." I said happily.

"I'm glad you liked it, our performers take pride in their work. They love making people happy." Mr Tall informed me.

"What I want to know is whether you have any paid work for me to do, I'm a student so I need all the help I can get financially." I explained.

"I need somebody to hand out posters and wash our trailers if you're interested. I'll pay you ten pounds an hour and you'll get your meals included, is that fair?" Mr Tall asked.

"Yes, that sounds brilliant. Can I work at nighttime so that my college work won't be affected?" I asked.

"Well you see whoever takes the job will need to travel with us, you cannot just wash our trailers one time because they'll need cleaning all the time." Mr Tall explained.

"Oh yeah, I didn't think of that." I said glumly.

"You could always leave college and start working for me, I'll pay you well and you'll have accommodation too as well as meals. What more do you need?" Mr Tall asked.

"I'd miss my friends and my family, I'll miss my pets. I can't leave my cat or my hamster behind." I explained carefully.

"Then bring them with you, your trailer will be big enough for a cat and a hamster. You can phone your friends and send them postcards from all around the world and I'll give you an address where they can write to you. Think of it as an adventure." Mr Tall replied.

"Yeah why not, I need to get out of this place. Cities drive me nuts, I long to walk on grass again. It will take me a few days to leave college and pack up all of my belongings." I responded.

"I understand, it is never easy but it is fun and I'll make sure that you'll have everything you need. Don't worry about a thing." Mr Tall said with a smile, he seemed to be a kind and generous man.

"Thanks so much, I'll work hard believe me and your trailers will be spotless." I assured Mr Tall.

"That is what I like to hear, come with me and I'll introduce you to the performers properly." Mr Tall told me.

"That sounds like a great idea." I said as I followed Mr Tall to where all of the performers were relaxing except for those who were asleep.

"Hello everybody, you put on a great show tonight. I wish to introduce you to the newest member of the team, this is the lady who'll be washing our trailers and handing out the posters." Mr Tall announced to the small gathering of performers.

"Hi, my name is Anna." I said by way of an introduction.

"Hi Anna, I'm Gertha Teeth." Gertha said as she shook my hand.

"Hello, I'm Rhamus Twobellies and I bid you welcome to the Cirque Du Freak." Rhamus Twobellies said with a smile.

"I'm Sive and this is Seersa, it is good to have a new team member with us at long last." Sive commented.

"Hi, I'm Alexander Ribs. By the way the Wolf Man can't speak, he just growls. That is Truska, she doesn't speak English but Evra understands her language." Alexander Ribs explained.

I waved at Truska in a friendly manner and she smiled back at me, I think that was her way of welcoming me.

"It is nice to meet you all, Mr Crepsley is missing I see." I concluded,

"He will be here, he is probably feeding his spider or hunting." Mr Tall replied.

"He was not very polite when I met him earlier. I ended up in the wrong place and he seemed really annoyed with me." I stated.

"Oh don't mind Larten he is always in a bad mood before he feeds. He's like that with everybody, especially humans. When you get to know him you'll learn to love him, we all respect him and he is good natured deep down. He has a heart of gold believe me." Alexander Ribs replied.

"I hope he'll learn to like me too." I answered.

"He will in time." Alexander Ribs told me, he sounded positive.

"I'd better go back to my college dormitory, it is very late and I have lectures in the morning." I explained to the gathering of performers.

"We understand, you have commitments and we have them too so go and get some sleep. I will sort everything out for you don't worry." Mr Tall said out of nowhere as he appeared before us all. He had a way of disappearing and reappearing at will, it was freaky but what else would you expect from the ringmaster of a freak show?

"Yes, I'll go back and get the bus, luckily they run all night on the weekend." I said casually as I stood up and left the camp.

When I arrived back in my dormitory Sarah was already asleep and so were many of the other girls in the rooms opposite to mine in the apartment complex that was attached to the college campus. I was putting my pyjamas on when I thought I heard a noise, I wasn't sure what it was but it sounded like somebody was opening the bathroom window. I got into bed and I pulled the covers up over myself, I settled down and rolled over onto my side so that I was comfortable. It was often hard to sleep because our dormitory was so hot in the Summertime.

I decided to sleep on top of my duvet cover as it was so hot, I covered myself over with a cotton sheet as it was much lighter than my duvet cover and it kept me cool so I that I wouldn't overheat and start to sweat. I remember drifting off into a light sleep, I was still alert even though my eyes were closed. I could hear nothing at all, my room was perfectly silent. I had a night light on because sometimes when I couldn't sleep I'd sit up and read for a while. I was halfway through an old Stephen King novel that was rather good. As I sat up in bed I thought I saw something out of the corner of my eye but when I looked again there was nothing there so I continued reading my book. I was enjoying the story very much, it was dark and twisted but most of Stephen King's books were like that. I found reading to be a distraction from the stress that I had been under, I had been struggling to get all of my assignments handed in on time but now that burden was no longer upon my shoulders, I never had to do an assignment ever again. I was free and that was thanks to Mr Tall who had kindly agreed to give me a job, a place to live, wages and food, who could turn down an offer like that?

As I was sitting up in bed with my light on I heard the dormitory door open, I looked up to see who it was disturbing me at this time of night. It was Sarah and I got the shock of my life when I saw her approaching me, she was blowing a tune on a flute.

"Sarah what on Earth are you doing? It is two am in the morning." I asked, I was annoyed. Sarah didn't answer me she just kept on blowing the flute, the tune was old and strange. That was when I noticed the spider on the dormitory floor, it was coming towards me at super quick speed. I sat bolt upright and watched the spider climb up my bed until it was right next to my leg. That was when I realised what was happening so I stayed absolutely still. I dared not move an inch for fear of being bitten. I couldn't quite comprehend how Sarah had managed to get hold of Mr Crepsley's spider, had she stolen it? Had he given it to her? My mind was full of questions, Sarah continued to play the flute and the spider advanced on me. I bravely put my hand out and to my relief the spider crawled into it and she sat there. Sarah stopped playing the flute for a moment but the spider didn't budge.

"Sarah, explain yourself. How on Earth did you manage to get Mr Crepsley's spider?" I asked quietly.

"I stole her from the show, I wanted to keep her as a pet. I've been practising the flute for a long time so I think that I can handle her, I've told her to stay in your hand and not move an inch until I start to play the flute again." Sarah explained to me in a quiet voice.

"You'll have to take her back, you cannot possibly expect Mr Crepsley to allow you to keep his pet can you?" I asked sternly.

"No, I know he will come after me but I just wanted to show you that I can control her too, isn't it cool?" Sarah asked me.

"Yes, it is kind of cool. I'll return the spider for you if you don't want to get in any kind of trouble with the freak show but seriously you cannot do things like this and expect to get off scot free." I explained firmly.

"I understand, I was an idiot to bring her here." Sarah replied glumly, then she placed the flute to her lips and she began to play it once again. This time the spider crawled out of my hand and up my chest, she hovered over my neck so I froze but then she crawled back down my arm and into her little wooden cage. Sarah closed her cage door and then I relaxed.

"You're right of course Anna. I hope that you'll be able to return her without any problems." Sarah said in a hushed tone.

"I cannot guarentee anything Sarah, I'll return the spider but if I get asked about it then I won't lie for you, I'll tell them the truth." I replied.

"Yes, you should tell them the truth if they ask you." Sarah agreed.

"I need to get some sleep now, goodnight Sarah." I said yawning.

"Goodnight, I'll see you in the morning." Sarah replied as she picked up the little wooden cage and left the dormitory.

Of all the stupid, idiotic, dumb things that Sarah could have done this was the worst. I was shocked that she would steal somebody's pet but even more so steal a potentially deadly pet that was unpredictable. I mean how thick can you get? I couldn't sleep though I did try my best. I just lay in bed until the sunlight came through my curtains and I heard my alarm clock buzzing. I was really tired because I hadn't slept so when I ate breakfast I was like a re-animated corpse. I had a shower and attended my first class, it was the usual crap and I learnt nothing new.

When lunchtime rolled around I handed in my last two assignments for the week and then I bought myself a sandwich and some juice from the canteen. After I had eaten I had a free period so I decided to go back to the camp and return the spider.

I went up to the dormitory, I grabbed my coat because it was cloudy outside and then I went to retrieve the spider from Sarah's bedroom, she didn't sleep in the dormitory. I picked up the cage but to my shock and horror it was empty-the spider was gone. In my head I was thinking of the immortal words "Houston we have a problem." what was I going to do now?


	3. Chapter 2

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 2:**

Madam Octa was missing, her cage was empty and she was nowhere to be seen. I tried playing the flute to get her to come out but it was no use, I tried searching behind my units, I used a torch and I checked everywhere for new webs, I searched every room that I could but there was still no sign of the illusive and deadly creature.

When I told Sarah she freaked out but she helped me to look for her nevertheless. This was all Sarah's doing, she was an idiot and that is putting it mildly trust me.

"You see what happens when you do stupid things?" I asked sarcastically.

"Yes, I've messed up." Sarah replied.

"That spider could be anywhere on this campus. Supposing she bites somebody and they die, you'd be responsible for that or what would happen if she gets stepped on and killed? Mr Crepsley would go mad and now you've let her escape which is even worse." I replied as I lectured Sarah about her idiotic actions.

"Look Anna I never intended for any of this to happen, I cannot explain why I stole the spider, I just did and now she could be anywhere. Maybe she got out through a window and someone else has found her." Sarah answered, she knew that she had messed up big time.

Sarah left the room to go and continue the search for the spider, I meanwhile continued to pull out my furniture units and check behind each one in turn. When I got to my bed I put my hand down the back of it to retrieve some of my paperwork that had slipped down beneath the gap between my bed and the wall. I retrieved the paperwork and as I was lifting my hand back from the gap I felt something, I withdrew my hand at lightning speed but it was too late. I looked at my hand, I saw two tiny marks on it and then I felt strange. I couldn't breathe, my mind went blank and then I must have blacked out...

Sarah's P.O.V

When I entered the room again I saw Anna laying unconscious on the bed, I shook her but I got no response so I rang for an ambulance.

"What's wrong with her?" I asked in a worried tone.

"She's been knocked out by something, we don't know what yet but we'll take her in the ambulance and we'll run some tests when we get to the hospital." one of the paramedics said.

"What's that on her hand?" I asked curiously.

"I don't know but they look like needle marks or something, does your friend take drugs?" the paramedic enquired as he filled in the medical forms.

"No, she despises drugs. They look like bite marks from an insect or something." I replied and that was when I realised what had happened and I started to panic.

Anna was taken to hospital and placed on a ventilator, she was unconscious and all I could hear were machines beeping at regular intervals.

I knew that Anna had been bitten by Madam Octa and I knew that her bite was lethal, however I also believed that there was an antidote and all I had to do was get hold of it, give it to Anna and save her life. It wouldn't be an easy thing to do but I knew that Anna's time was limited, I only had a few hours before Anna would be too far gone to save. There was only one person who could help me and that was Mr Crepsley...

I hopped on the next bus that I could catch, I got off at the same stop that I had used when I went to watch the freak show. It was seven pm at night and it was still light outside so I felt quite confident that I would be able to walk to the old cinema, break in, seek out Mr Crepsley and ask him to please save the life of my best friend Anna.

I had located Madam Octa and soon she was safely back in her wooden cage, I had the cage with me so that I could return the spider to her rightful owner, I knew that I had done wrong by stealing the spider in the first place but that no longer mattered to me, what mattered was getting the antidote and saving Anna's life.

I cautiously approached the old cinema, films hadn't been shown there since the new multiplex cinema and bowling alley had opened and it had gone out of business. The main doors were padlocked but there was another entrance because the fire escape was open, the door was closed but it wasn't locked or blocked. I entered the old cinema through the fire escape door, it was the same entrance she had used on the night of the show so I knew where I was going or at least I thought I did. I walked through the darkness of the corridors until I found the door that would lead me to the auditorium. I must have spent about twenty minutes searching around for the performers, I was about to leave when I spotted who I had been searching for. Mr Crepsley was sitting at a table playing cards and when he saw me approaching he clicked his fingers, the cards packed themselves away back into their box. Then he spoke directly to me, I just stood there shaking.

"I see that you have located my missing pet, how did you come to find her?"

"I took her from you, I wanted to show my friend that I too can control her but there has been an accident. I have decided to return her to you as you are her rightful owner. It was wrong of me to steal her and for that I apologise. I have taken good care of her, I've fed her and I've spent lots of time with her as well." I explained nervously.

Mr Crepsley clicked his fingers again, the wooden cage flew through the air and landed on the table gently. I was stunned, how had he done that?

"You said something about an accident, tell me what happened." Mr Crepsley said calmly.

"I go to college, I had classes and a couple of days ago I left her cage door ajar by mistake, she got out and I couldn't find her anywhere. I eventually located her but by then it was too late because she has bitten my best friend Anna. She is in the hospital and she will die unless you help me to help her." I commented with tears in my eyes.

"Why should I help you? You are a thief and if Madam Octa has bitten your friend then that is your own fault. You should not meddle with creatures that do not belong to you, Madam Octa is not a pet and if I ever lose the flute she would most likely kill me." Mr Crepsley snapped angrily.

"I understand, you are right of course. I was an idiot and now my best friend is going to die because of me, I'll go now." I wept as I turned and walked away slowly, tears were streaming down my face.

"Wait," Mr Crepsley called out. I stopped and turned back to face Mr Crepsley.

"Yes, what is it?" I questioned Mr Crepsley.

"What if I told you that I could cure your friend, what would you give me in exchange for the cure?" Mr Crepsley enquired.

"I would do anything to heal her but I have nothing of value to offer you, I'm only a poor college student and I have no money to speak of." I replied as more tears rolled down my pale cheeks.

"I do not require money from you, I require your assistance." Mr Crepsley said as he smiled slightly.

"How can I help you?" I asked eagerly hoping that I could make a bargain and save my friend's life.

"If you and your friend agree to become my assistants then I shall save her life, if you refuse then your friend will die." Mr Crepsley said simply.

"I accept, what do you need me to do?" I asked, I had stopped crying by this point.

"You will become my travelling companions, you will attend to my every need and in exchange for that I will teach you my ways and I shall cure your friend." Mr Crepsley explained to me.

"What if you cure my friend but she doesn't wish to become your assistant?" I commented.

"Then you will have twice as much work to do." Mr Crepsley answered simply, then he asked "Do we have a deal?"

"Yes, if you save my friend's life I'll become your assistant." I agreed.

"Very well, first of all I have to test your blood to see if you are compatible." Mr Crepsley said.

"Test my blood?" I said with a puzzled look on my face.

"I am a vampire, if you are going to be my assistant then you will need to become a vampire too." Mr Crepsley answered.

"You're a vampire? Yeah right, like I believe that. Vampires aren't real." I replied.

"I am a vampire and you must become one too or the deal is off." Mr Crepsley snapped back, he was annoyed.

"I didn't mean to offend you I just find it hard to comprehend." I responded honestly,

"I understand, hold up your hands." Mr Crepsley instructed, so I held up my hands and waited to find out what was coming next.

Mr Crepsley then dug his long nails into the fleshy tips of his fingers before he did the same to mine, I yelled out in pain and shock as I hadn't expected anything like this to happen.

"It hurts like hell." I complained.

"It will do, however you will face much worse than this trust me." Mr Crepsley answered back.

"I can't breathe." I said breathlessly, I felt weak.

"You will be alright, just stay calm. It is not the nicest thing to go through I admit but it is nearly over." Mr Crepsley said as he broke away from me, he was bleeding from all ten of his fingertips. Mr Crepsley sucked his fingers and the bleeding stopped, then he did the same to me and my bleeding also stopped.

"What happens now?" I asked when I had got my breath back.

"Now we are going to the hospital to give the antidote to your friend before it is too late." Mr Crepsley answered,

"Thank you for saving her life." I replied automatically.

"Let us go now, we may not have much time left." Mr Crepsley responded firmly so we left the cinema and headed for the hospital. When we arrived at the hospital Mr Crepsley looked up and he started to figure out how the best way to enter without being seen was.

"Come this way and hold on to me tight, I am going to climb up the wall and enter that window." Mr Crepsley instructed.

"OK." I said, I gripped on tightly to Mr Crepsley's back as he began to scale the wall by digging his nails into the bricks one after the other and pulling himself up.

When Mr Crepsley reached the window he entered it, Anna was in the isolation block didn't look good at all. Mr Crepsley went over to her and he checked her pulse.

"We are in time, I need to administer the antidote now." Mr Crepsley said as he pulled a small glass bottle out of his pocket. He made a small incision into Anna's arm, then he tipped the contents of the glass bottle into his mouth before he blew it into the incision as if he were blowing up a balloon. It was weird to watch but I didn't care, I only wanted my friend to live.

"It is done, she will live but she will be weak for a while so I will let her recover completely before I blood her too." Mr Crepsley said decisively.

"I understand, so what happens now?" I asked.

"I shall return to the Cirque Du Freak and when your friend has recovered I shall return to collect you both. Then we will leave this city behind and travel with the Cirque Du Freak until I decide otherwise." Mr Crepsley answered.

"I shall return to college then and wait for further instructions from yourself." I replied.

"Yes, that is best. When your friend has recovered you can explain everything to her." Mr Crepsley said as we left the hospital together.

I returned to college and I went to bed, the next morning I received a call from the hospital saying that Anna's condition had improved and that she was breathing on her own. I was relieved to hear the news as it meant that the antidote was working, however I had paid high price for my stupidity.

I was still trying to work out in my head exactly what I was going to tell Anna, I had to tell her the truth but there was no guarentee that Anna would believe me.

I decided to visit Anna in the hospital that afternoon as I had no lectures to attend, I was sure that Anna would want to see me and I wanted to see Anna too now that she was recovering from her ordeal.


	4. Chapter 3

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

Chapter 3

Anna's P.O.V

I remember waking up and I felt groggy, I was in a room by myself and it took me a few moments to figure out exactly where I was. When I realised that I was in the hospital I sat up in my bed, I had I.V drips attached to my hands and several machines around me were beeping constantly. A nurse walked in so I asked her what had happened to me.

"You were rushed into intensive care a few days ago with a suspected insect bite reaction, we stabilised you and then last night you started to breathe by yourself so we took you off the ventilator." the nurse explained.

"I feel weak but I think I can manage some food, can I eat?" I asked.

"I'll have to check with the doctor but it shouldn't be a problem." the nurse replied as she left my room.

I sat up and I tried to make sense of things, then my memory began to return but things weren't adding up in my head.

Sarah came in to visit me, we sat for ages and talked about all kinds of stuff.

"What exactly happened to me?" I finally asked.

"That is a long story but I have to tell you the truth. Madam Octa the spider was under your bed, when you put your hand down there to pick up the paperwork she bit you. I have since returned her to Mr Crepsley." Sarah began to explain slowly.

"Madam Octa's bite is deadly, how can I be alive?" I queried.

"Well you see that is the other thing I have to tell you, when I went back to the cinema to return Madam Octa to Mr Crepsley I told him about what had happened and I asked him to help me save your life. He agreed to give you the antidote and that is why you're recovering, however I had to make a deal with him. The deal was that if he saved your life then both of us would become his assistants and travel with him. The Cirque Du Freak is the proper name for the freak show that we watched. There is something else that you have to know and I'm not sure how to tell you this part; Mr Crepsley is a vampire and he has turned me into one too, when you're well enough you will also become a vampiress. This is the price that I've paid to save your life." Sarah expanded.

"You did that to save me?" I asked, I was surprised.

"You're my best friend, if not for me acting like an idiot none of this would have happened. I had to save you, I couldn't let you die." Sarah commented.

"Sarah you are nuts but thanks for saving my life, I owe you one." I replied smiling.

"Now what?" Sarah asked me.

"Now we have to wait until I am recovered and then I will speak to Mr Crepsley. I don't want to become a vampiress but I may have no choice in the matter by the looks of things." I replied.

"I am sorry, I didn't know what else to do. It was either agree to the deal or lose you for good." Sarah added.

"I understand, I would have done the same thing if the roles had been reversed." I said confidently.

"Then you're not mad at me?" Sarah asked.

"No, I'm not mad at you. I'm alive because of you." I replied happily.

Just then one of the doctors came into the room and checked how I was doing. I asked about eating something as I was really hungry.

"You can eat, you need to build up your strength." the doctor said in answer to my question as to whether or not I could eat. The doctor wrote on my notes to give me regular meals of healthy food like soup and stew for example. Pretty soon after the doctor left another, much older nurse came in and she asked me what I would like to eat. I ordered tomato soup with fresh bread and a milkshake followed by rice pudding. I really was starving and I ate everything that I had ordered.

Sarah stayed with me until she had to return to college for her last lecture of the day, I had to stay in hospital until I was fully recovered in case there were any side effects. Sarah showed me the ten scars that were now running across her fingertips, they were not big at all and unless you looked closely you'd barely notice them.

I was still trying to get my head around the whole scenario that had taken place. My best friend was a vampiress and now I was expected to become one too, I was a little bit nervous but who wouldn't be? I would have to leave all of my friends and family behind, I'd have to drink blood (the idea of that disgusts me) and then I'd have to do my best to fit in with the other freak show performers. I had made a good first impression but would I be accepted by them if they knew that I was a vampiress? These questions were swimming around inside my head as if my brain itself were a giant pool of jumbled up answers.

I stopped worrying because I didn't want to get stressed out over something that I had no control over, Sarah made the deal to save my life so I guess that as ironic as it sounds I'd just have to live with it. I am happy to be alive and recovering of course but had the roles been reversed I would have tried to strike a better deal with Mr Crepsley.

I had to give Mr Crepsley his dues because he didn't have to make a deal with Sarah so that I would live; he could have left me to die. He didn't have to stay in the cinema either, he could have moved onto a new location but he chose to remain in the city. I had a feeling that Mr Crepsley liked me but I wasn't sure.

A few more days went by and now it was time to leave the hospital, the staff were nice and everything but I wanted to get back to college and pack up my stuff ready to leave with the Cirque Du Freak when it was time to join them.

I left the hospital and I took a taxi back to the college as it was quicker than standing in the rain and waiting for the bus. I still didn't know how I was going to explain this to everybody and to the college Principal also, I had to tell them that my friend and I had decided to leave college in order to take a gap year and that we had both been offered a chance to go on the adventure of a lifetime (which was true). This was the story that Sarah and I had discussed and agreed upon because it sounded plausible. It wasn't uncommon for students to drop out and take gap years after all and we were both old enough to go off on our own. It wasn't like we needed to tell our families or anything, it was just easier this way.

I was looking forward to starting the next chapter of my life but at the same time I was nervous, the idea of becoming a vampiress scared me but at least I would not be on my own, having my best friend there would make it not so bad.

I was packing my bags and emptying out my units, I had lots of stuff to take with me. I wasn't going anywhere without my laptop that had my digital diary recorded on it and my mobile phone was an essential item too.

"How are you getting on?" Sarah asked me as she helped me to pack some of my clothing into my suitcase.

"I am nearly done with the packing but we still have to speak to the Principal." I reminded Sarah.

"I have already spoken to him, he understands the situation and he wished us all the best." Sarah replied, she was busy folding my clothes up whilst I decided what I was keeping and what I was giving to the charity shop. I couldn't take everything with me, I had one small suitcase on wheels and a backpack and when they were full up there would be no more room.

I hoped that Mr Crepsley didn't mind me packing and taking my belongings with me, he hadn't said anything against it so I thought it was OK. Sarah was already packed and ready to leave, her new enhanced speed meant that she could do everything in half the time that it took me to do it. Watching Sarah test out her vampiric powers was really cool, I wondered if I would be like her when I too was blooded.

The only thing we had to do now was wait for Mr Crepsley to come and collect us, I was so nervous I could not stand up without shaking. When Sarah heard the bathroom window opening I knew that it was time to go so I stood up, wheeled my suitcase out of the dormitory and down the stairs of the apartment building. I waited for Sarah to join me, we exited our apartment and then we walked together into the night...


	5. Chapter 4

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 4:**

 **Mr Crepsley was waiting for us at our pre-arranged meeting place, as we walked over to him he looked at us with an eyebrow arched like he had a puzzled look on his face.**

 **"What is that?" Mr Crepsley asked me pointing at my suitcase.**

 **"It is my suitcase, it contains my clothing and a few other things that I need." I answered simply.**

 **"Vampires do not use such contraptions, we make do without suitcases." Mr Crepsley replied.**

 **"So I can't take it with me?" I asked, I was annoyed.**

 **"If you want it then bring it but it had better not slow us down. We have a lot of ground to cover before the sunrise." Mr Crepsley commented.**

 **"Well in that case we had best get moving, are we walking all the way?" Sarah asked curiously.**

 **"We are walking unless you have some money for train tickets." Mr Crepsley replied as we began walking, it was dark and I couldn't see anything so I had to follow Sarah's voice.**

 **"This is rediculous, I can't see a thing. We are walking in the pitch black of night." I complained.**

 **"I can see perfectly well, it is not dark." Mr Crepsley responded, he hated it when people complained about what he deemed to be "Inconsequencial matters."**

 **"I have roughly fifty pounds in cash, that is enough for three single train tickets to wherever it is that we're heading for." I said as I nearly tripped up on a branch.**

 **"Very well, we will walk to the next train station. It is not far from here, it is about a mile or two." Mr Crepsley said.**

 **"A mile is further than you think when you aren't used to walking." I said, I was out of breath and tired. We had been walking for three hours already.**

 **"Stop complaining." Mr Crepsley ordered.**

 **"I am exhausted, out of breath and in pain. I can't walk another step until I have had a rest." I replied, I was finding it hard to stand up so I sat down on my suitcase.**

 **"We must continue, we are some way off yet from our desired destination. As you are still human I understand that you do not have the stamina of Sarah and I so I will allow you to rest briefly." Mr Crepsley commented as I had a drink and tried to get my breath back.**

 **After roughly twenty minutes I was able to continue walking and we got to the train station pretty soon, it wasn't as far away as Mr Crepsley had anticipated.**

 **"Where are we heading to? I need to know which tickets to buy." I queried, I had not been on the outskirts of the city before.**

 **"We are heading for the next big city on the map, we need the quickest route to get there as the Cirque Du Freak is waiting to meet us when we arrive." Mr Crepsley announced.**

 **"OK so we need three singles to the city. That is simple enough." I replied as I went to the self-service ticket machine. I bought our tickets and then we waited on the platform for the train to come in, it was delayed due to some debris on the tracks but I was happy just to sit down in the waiting room and rest. I stopped at the cafe and bought myself a cup of hot chocolate and a sandwich. I needed to replenish my spent energy.**

 **"Sarah can I get you anything?" I asked politely.**

 **"A can of coke would be good, I am thirsty too." Sarah replied.**

 **"Mr Crepsley do you require anything?" Sarah asked,**

 **"Do they have meat?" Mr Crepsley asked.**

 **"They have a ham sandwich or a hotdog." I replied.**

 **"Do they not sell venison here?" Mr Crepsley asked, I was surprised by his query.**

 **"No, they just have ham sandwiches or hotdogs and beef burgers." I answered back.**

 **"I will have a sandwich." Mr Crepsley told me so I ordered him a ham sandwich on brown bread. He enjoyed it too.**

 **When the train eventually came we boarded it and we got seats together in one of the carriages, we had a table too which was useful. Mr Crepsley looked a bit odd with his long, red cloak on but nobody said anything to us about it. I rather liked it, it suited him. When I said that I was cold he took it off and permitted me to use it in place of a blanket, that was kind of him to do. I think Mr Crepsley felt bad because I was still human and Sarah wasn't.**

 **Sarah was already feeding and her powers had fully kicked in, I could tell that she was going to be one hell of a formidable vampiress when she had been trained. Sarah also needed to be taught about "The ways of the Clan."**

 **I was sitting next to Mr Crepsley and I was still shivering a bit, the train was freezing cold and outside it was raining hard. To make things worse I hadn't eaten much either, I was also exhausted from all the walking that I had done to reach the train station in the first instance.**

 **"I'm hungry." I stated matter of factly.**

 **"When we reach the city the folk at the Cirque Du Freak will feed us a hot meal, they always do." Mr Crepsley replied.**

 **"How long before we get there?" I asked,**

 **"About another hour or so." Mr Crepsley answered.**

 **"Oh OK, I'm not sure that I can last that long because I feel so weak." I murmured.**

 **"I have nothing to give you because I do not carry food with me. I go hunting when I need to." Mr Crepsley revealed.**

 **"If you can bear with me I think I may have brought some stuff with me, I just need to search in my bag. I think I have some sweets left and my emergency can of Red Bull. You can have that if I can find it, I've packed so much stuff for this trip." Sarah added, then she opened up her big backpack and emptied the contents of it onto our table. Sure enough a can of Red Bull was in there along with a bag of Hula Hoops and some Haribos. I was saved for now. I scoffed the crisps and the Haribos then I opened the can of Red Bull, I drank from it until it was empty. After I had consumed Sarah's food and her emergency can of Red Bull I felt much better, I think Sarah knew that she would not need it as her vampire blood made her much stronger than myself. She could manage without much food as long as she drank enough human blood, I on the other hand had to eat regular meals because I was not a vampiress.**

 **I was wondering when Mr Crepsley would turn me into a vampiress so I asked him about it.**

 **"When will I be blooded?" I asked quietly.**

 **"I shall blood you when we arrive at the Cirque Du Freak, I understand that Mr Tall has offered you a job which is good, I will discuss with Mr Tall about a job for Sarah because everybody helps out at the Cirque Du Freak." Mr Crepsley explained to us both.**

 **"That sounds fair." Sarah responded.**

 **"I agree that we both need to pull our weight." I nodded.**

 **Just then the train slowed down and it pulled into a station, I looked out of the window to see where we were. I noticed that the station was only three stops away from where we would be departing the train, we didn't have long to go before we arrived in the city.**

 **I was nervous, I hadn't been to a big city in a while because I had been living at the college. The college I had attended was located in a city, however my college timetable was full so I hadn't had time to go out into the city itself and explore it fully. I hoped that I would be able to go and familiarise myself with this city, it was going to become my temporary home after all.**


	6. Chapter 5

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 5**

 **When we had departed the train and left the station Mr Crepsley led the way to an old and run down themepark, it had been closed due to safety and city healthcode violations. The rusty frames of the rollercoasters were still erected, the ferris wheel was up but not operational and the entrance to the old food stall was locked up. The only thing that seemed to be working was the street light around the corner from the old themepark.**

 **"Why are we here? The whole place is deserted." I asked curiously, I just wanted to find a warm place and go to sleep.**

 **"It is not deserted, we just have not located where the Cirque Du Freak have parked their vans yet." Mr Crepsley told me.**

 **We walked around the deserted themepark and in doing so we located the vans and trailers of the Cirque Du Freak, they had been hidden behind a small copse. The big top had been set up already, it was a huge, yellow circus tent. I went inside it and there were a lot of things going on, people were running around all over the place and setting stuff up for the show. The show didn't take place in the actual tent itself, it was more like the equivelent of the backstage area where things were being fixed, props were being set up, the performers were rehearsing or putting their costumes on and so on.**

 **Mr Tall was in the centre giving out directions, he was making sure that everything was being set up correctly and on time. When Mr Tall spotted us he smiled, he was happy to see us.**

 **"Larten I am glad that you've made it here, you always put on a good show for the audience." Mr Tall said.**

 **"I do not have time for discussions now Hibernius, I must prepare Madam Octa for the show. I have to polish her cage and feed her." Mr Crepsley replied honestly.**

 **"What about us?" I queried, "What do we do?"**

 **"You two can help set up the lights and the trays of souvineers." Mr Tall commented, two people in blue robes came over to us and they led Sarah away. I was reluctant to go as I was a bit scared of these blue hooded creatures that never seemed to speak.**

 **"Don't be afraid Anna, the Little People are quite friendly and they'll help you out with setting up the lights." Mr Tall explained to me.**

 **"Little people?" I questioned curiously.**

 **"They are the ones in the blue robes." Mr Tall answered.**

 **"Oh right, can they speak?" I asked.**

 **"No, they can't speak but they understand everything you say to them or about them so treat them respectfully." Mr Tall ordered.**

 **"Of course I will." I said in response and then I followed the remaining Little Person to my designated work area. I was still pulling my suitcase so I called out to one of the Little People and it came over to me.**

 **"Can you look after my bags please? I can't work and watch them at the same time." The Little Person nodded and he dragged my suitcase off somewhere, I saw the Little Person put it onto a rack with lots of other bags and then it came back for my backpack which it placed on the rack next to my suitcase. The Little Person didn't move after it put my backpack on the luggage rack it just stood infront of it, it seemed that the Little Person was guarding the luggage rack and that was fine by me.**

 **I started to help with the lights, I had to hold the safety ropes in place whilst the Little People attached the lights to the old theatre where the show was going to be performed. When the lights had been secured the safety ropes were removed and rolled up into a coil. The lights were pulled upwards and into position by more ropes on a winch. The winch was controlled by levers that the Little People used.**

 **After the lighting had been set up I had to help with the souvineer trays, I had to fill them up with all kinds of things that would be offered to the audience during the interval as well as before and after the show. I had bought some of the items myself when I had watched the show but some of the other things I hadn't seen before.**

 **I finished filling up the trays then Mr Tall said that I could have a break and something to eat before the show started, after I had eaten Mr Crepsley came and took me off to his trailer so that he could blood me. I wasn't looking forward to it but I knew that it had to be done so I decided to get it over and done with sooner rather than later.**

 **Mr Crepsley opened up his trailer and I went inside it, it was bigger than I expected and Madam Octa was inside her cage, she was eating a cricket or some kind of locust. Mr Crepsley also had a coffin inside his trailer along with a table and chairs, he also had an armchair.**

 **"How are you Anna?" Mr Crepsley asked me.**

 **Now that I could see him properly I noticed how tall and well built he was.**

 **"I am OK, I ate some stew and bread when Mr Tall said that I could have a break." I replied.**

 **"Are you prepared for me to blood you?" Mr Crepsley asked.**

 **"I guess I am, Sarah has explained the process to me already." I answered.**

 **At this point Mr Crepsley used his long nails to open up his fingertips so that they were bleeding prefusely, he then did the same to mine before we joined our fingertips together. It hurt a lot, it was worse than what I had anticipated it would be so I cried out in pain. When the blood reached my heart it felt like I was being stabbed, it was almost unbareable.**

 **When it was over Mr Crepsley stopped the bleeding by using his spit to heal our wounds and then we both sat down for a while to recover, it was hard on him too not just myself.**

 **"How are you feeling now?" Mr Crepsley asked me after a while had passed.**

 **"I think that I am OK, it hurt me badly but it is over now. I think that you're really good looking by the way, forgive me if I've crossed the line by telling you this." I replied honestly, then I blushed a fair bit.**

 **"I understand how you feel because many ladies find me attractive. I must tell you however that if you acted upon your feelings then it could cause a rift between yourself and Sarah." Mr Crepsley commented.**

 **"I didn't think of that, however Sarah doesn't need to know." I responded.**

 **"Could you keep this from her?" Mr Crepsley questioned me.**

 **"If she asks me about anything to do with us then I will be honest with her, however if she doesn't ask then I won't tell her." I answered truthfully.**

 **"I already have a mate, I do not think that being unfaithful to her is a good idea." Mr Crepsley revealed.**

 **"I apologise, I thought that you were single." I replied quickly.**

 **"No, I am not single. My mate lives at Vampire Mountain but we have had a huge fight so I came here to clear my head." Mr Crepsley explained.**

 **"You have a mountain?" I asked, surprised.**

 **"Yes, we go there to live if we have nowhere else to go. Once every twelve years the vampire clan holds a council there to discuss important matters." Mr Crepsley replied.**

 **"I take it that we will be attending the council when it is on again won't we?" I asked with genuine interest.**

 **"Yes, both yourself and Sarah will be presented to the council as it is a part of our customs. We welcome new clan members and besides I wish to introduce you to my friends." Mr Crepsley informed me.**

 **"You have friends?" I mocked jokingly.**

 **"Of course I have friends, I am a vampire of high standing. The clan has great respect for myself and for my mate." Mr Crepsley replied, he sounded serious.**

 **"Is that why you wear a ring?" I quizzed.**

 **"Yes, this ring was given to me by my mate when we had our blessed mateship ceremony." Mr Crepsley stated.**

 **"You mean like a wedding?" I replied, I was curious.**

 **"Yes, you could say that." Mr Crepsley remarked.**

 **"So you are married but currently separated?" I probed.**

 **"That is a very human way of looking at it but yes that is the best way of describing my relationship status." Mr Crepsley clarified.**

 **"I was hoping that you and I could be together." I said sadly, hearing that Mr Crepsley was effectively married wasn't what I was expecting to hear. I should have realised that Mr Crepsley wasn't available when I saw his ring but I wanted to try my luck anyway just in case Mr Crepsley was single and he wore a ring for a different reason.**

 **For a long time I just looked down, I looked at him but when I did look at him I could feel tears welling up. I looked away quickly hoping that he wouldn't see them but a couple of tears had already rolled down my cheeks.**

 **"I'd better go, I can't stay here." I said as I stood up to leave the trailer but Mr Crepsley stopped me from leaving so I remained in his trailer. There were still a couple of hours before the show started.**

 **"Are you crying?" Mr Crepsley asked me.**

 **"No Mr Crepsley." I answered quickly, it was a lie.**

 **"I can see the tears from here, do not lie to me. Never lie to me." Mr Crepsley chastised me firmly.**

 **"I'm sorry, I just feel ashamed and embarrased about crying infront of you," I admitted.**

 **"What has made you cry? Do you regret becoming a vampire?" Mr Crepsley pressed me, his eyebrows were raised.**

 **"It isn't that, I am thankful to you for saving my life. I am lucky to be alive and I realise this fact. I was crying because I thought that maybe you liked me. Finding out that you are with somebody even though you are separated from that person hurts me." I acknowledged sadly.**

 **"I am sorry, I forget how easily human females fall in love. With vampires it is all about animal lust, if we fall in love then it is a very special thing because it only happens on rare occasions. We go after sexual pleasure more than actual love." Mr Crepsley told me.**

 **This made a lot of sense to me but it didn't stop me from wanting to kiss Mr Crepsley at the very least.**

 **"Mr Crepsley I can't help how I feel. Whenever I see you my heartbeat quickens and I think about only one thing." I said truthfully.**

 **"I can hear your heartbeat racing Anna and by the way you do not have to call me Mr Crepsley, call me Larten for that is my first name." Larten replied, then he looked at me in a way that he had never looked at me before, it was a look of lust.**

 **Mr Crepsley's eyes were were shiny and bright. I couldn't look at them because every time I did my brain went blank and I couldn't think or speak.**

 **"I would like it very much if I could kiss you Larten but I understand that it can't happen because you're spoken for." I blurted out, I couldn't keep it to myself any longer.**

 **"I appreciate your honesty, if you wish to kiss me then I shall not prevent it." Larten replied.**

 **I couldn't hold back any longer, I walked over to the armchair where Mr Crepsley was sitting and he motioned me to sit down upon his lap so I did. We faced each other, I was trembling because this was the closest that we had ever been to each other apart from when I was blooded. I adjusted myself slightly so that I was comfortable, I could feel Mr Crepsley's hands touching me gently in a way and in places that I had never been touched before. Finally our lips connected and it was like no kiss that I had ever experienced before. It was slow at first but Mr Crepsley had skills so what started off as an innocent kiss turned into a much more lustful kiss, his tongue touched my lower lip as his way of asking for entry which I allowed him to have. I wasn't inexperienced but I was out of practice, I hadn't kissed anybody in a long time so when I shared this kiss with Mr Crepsley I didn't know what to expect.**

 **The kiss itself didn't last long but it was long enough to make my head spin and it wasn't too deep either, Mr Crepsley was very careful not to scratch me with his nails and he kissed me slowly without using his vampiric speed. I was nervous at first so when his lips touched mine I was still shaking a little bit, I closed my eyes and I let my instincts take over.**

 **When we stopped kissing I leaned into Mr Crepsley a little bit as if I was snuggling up to him, I rested my head on his shoulder and he had his arms around me. We sat in the armchair for a while, I was warm and comfortable.**

 **There was a knock on the door of the trailer, reluctantly I had to move so that Mr Crepsley could answer it. I sat back down in the armchair and I draped Mr Crepsley's cloak around me as if it were a blanket. Mr Tall entered the trailer and he saw me resting in the armchair.**

 **"Hi Anna, Larten has to be on stage soon. I see that you've made yourself at home in here, I do however have a trailer prepared for you." Mr Tall revealed to me.**

 **"Thank you Mr Tall, I am going to be sleeping in it tonight." I replied.**

 **"Think nothing of it, all of the performers have their own trailers and I provide staff trailers too because you will need a place to rest, eat and sleep. When we travel to new locations we go in vans, not everybody can drive so sometimes we use a minibus to transport performers. Can you drive Anna?" Mr Tall asked.**

 **"Yes, I can drive but I have no vehicle. Vampires can manage without cars." I stated.**

 **"Vampires can flit so they have no need of cars or vans to transport them to new places." Mr Crepsley interrupted.**

 **"Of course you can flit, why did I forget that fact?" Mr Tall questioned himself.**

 **"You forget insignificant things because you have a lot of important information to remember." I added.**

 **"That is very true, you have no idea how hard it is to manage a circus. I shall leave you in peace now, Larten you're performing after Hans Hands tonight so I hope that you are prepared to go on after the interval is over." Mr Tall informed us both although the running order didn't matter to me.**

 **"I am prepared and Madam Octa is ready to thrill another crowd with her skills." Mr Crepsley answered politely.**

 **Mr Tall then left the trailer and Larten followed him to the theatre where the show was taking place. I headed to the theatre also, my job was to walk through the audience and sell souvineers to as many people as I could. I did rather well actually because selling stuff was one of my talents. By the end of the show I had sold out of many of the items on the trays and the T Shirts at the merchandise stall were also sold out. It was a packed theatre and the Little People had to get extra chairs to fit everybody in, I wasn't surprised because it was a huge city and people from all walks of life had turned up to watch the show.**

 **Mr Tall was very pleased because this one show had made us enough money to put fuel in the vans to keep them running, there was also enough money left over to buy some groceries because we were running low on staples like cereals.**

 **Mr Tall liked to pay everybody's wages at the end of every show, this way nobody would ever be short of money. Mr Tall handed me my first wage packet since joining the show, I'd only worked for one day but Mr Tall paid me a full week's wages in one go, he called it a "start up fund" so that I would have enough money to last me for a while in case I needed anything.**

 **It was three am in the morning when I went to my trailer, I was shattered. Mr Crepsley expected me to turn nocturnal as I was now a vampiress, I said that I would become nocturnal when my powers had kicked in. As I was only a half vampiress the sun wouldn't kill me, when Mr Crepsley was asleep I could move around the campsite helping the performers out and running errands for him that he couldn't do. I learnt to cook and I learnt how to repair costumes too, I made myself useful and I was always willing to lend a hand.**

 **We were one big family at the Cirque Du Freak and to share this life changing experience with my best friend was even better. Things were going great, that was until Gavnur Purl arrived and told Mr Crepsley some news that would put all three of us in danger...**


	7. Chapter 6

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 6:**

 **Things were going great, I had settled in nicely with the Cirque Du Freak and I was enjoying travelling around to all different locations. My vampire powers had kicked in but I was not keen on drinking blood. I knew that I had to drink blood soon or I would age and die, I didn't want to die.**

 **One evening when there was no show being played I asked Mr Crepsley about feeding, Sarah had been feeding independantly for a while but I hadn't fed once since being blooded.**

 **"You must drink blood, if you do not drink blood on a regular basis then you will die." Mr Crepsley warned me.**

 **"I know this and that is why I am asking you to find me somebody who I can feed from." I replied.**

 **"As a matter of fact I am going to feed tonight. When I have fed you can feed after I have finished." Mr Crepsley said in reply.**

 **"That suits me fine, let me know when you are leaving and I'll come with you. I haven't fed once since you blooded me." I admitted.**

 **"Why not?" Mr Crepsley queried.**

 **"The idea of feeding makes me feel ill, I think it is because I'm still half human." I explained.**

 **"My former assistant felt the same way about feeding but he is now a Vampire Prince." Mr Crepsley told me.**

 **"He has done well for himself then if he is a Vampire Prince." I replied, I was interested to hear more about Mr Crepsley's former assistant at a later date.**

 **Sarah was busy cooking the evening meal for all of the performers, everybody took it in turns to cook meals for the performers and staff. Mr Crepsley had taught Sarah and I how to cook stews as well as how to roast joints of meat over an open fire.**

 **Mr Crepsley would often hunt for us, he'd bring back a deer or a brace of pheasants, a large stag would feed everybody in the campsite but a brace of pheasants would only feed Mr Crepsley, Sarah and myself. I didn't eat much anyway. Mr Crepsley had taught us how to prepare pheasants for the stew pot, he showed us how to gut them and pluck them.**

 **When Sarah had finished adding a mix of herbs and a few wild berries to the stock she served up the stew and we tucked in. It tasted great too, Mr Crepsley was a very good cook and he had taught Sarah and I everything he knew about cooking, the stew tasted delicious. We ate well every evening and nobody in the Cirque Du Freak ever went hungry.**

 **The time came for Mr Crepsley to take me for my first feed, I followed him out of the campsite and we walked into the night. I didn't know where we were heading but we were on foot so I assumed that it wasn't very far.**

 **Mr Crepsley made the sign for me to be quiet. I had my back up against a wall and so did he, we were trying to sneak into a block of flats without the security lights being triggered off.**

 **Mr Crepsley advanced and climbed up one of the nearest walls. I already knew what his plan was so I waited for him to come and get me. I saw Mr Crepsley climbing through a window on the first floor. A few moments later I saw him again by an open door, he had opened the fire escape door from the inside because I couldn't climb up walls very easily. I joined him inside the block of flats and then we broke into one of them, Mr Crepsley had a way of opening locked doors by clicking his fingers and he was an expert lock picker as well.**

 **We stood inside the flat for a moment and waited, we were listening to find out how many people were in the flat. Mr Crepsley began to walk towards a door that was slightly ajar, I followed behind him silently. We entered the bedroom to find a man asleep in bed, he was snoring. Mr Crepsley approached the man but I held back for a moment. I had to let Mr Crepsley feed before it was my turn to feed.**

 **Mr Crepsley motioned to me to come close so I went over to him, I saw that the sleeping man had blood flowing from his arm.**

 **"Clamp your mouth around the wound and suck it to feed." Mr Crepsley whispered to me, cautiously I knelt down on the ground until my mouth was level with the man's arm, I saw where the wound was so I put my mouth over it and began to drink. The blood was warm and salty, it was slightly metallic in taste too. I continued to drink until Mr Crepsley told me to stop. After I had finished I felt much better, I had been feeling a bit weak.**

 **We left the block of flats and headed back to the campsite, my human life was over and my life as a vampiress had begun. When we got back to the campsite I still had the taste of blood in my mouth. I wouldn't have to feed again for a week or two, it wasn't a bad experience but it would take some getting used to.**

 **"Anna, have you fed?" Sarah asked me when I bumped into her.**

 **"Yes, I've just had my first feed." I replied.**

 **"How was it?" Sarah asked.**

 **"It's something that I'll get used to with time." I said.**

 **"It takes a little bit of practice." Sarah added.**

 **"I agree but I'll get the hang of it, if I don't feed then I'll die so I had better get used to it." I concluded.**

 **I went to see Mr Crepsley after I had finished talking with Sarah, I knocked on the door of his trailer and he opened it. I was invited inside and I sat down. I spent a lot of time with Mr Crepsley in his trailer, we were quite close. Mr Crepsley was sitting in the armchair so I sat at the table. I was wearing my red velvet outfit, I had intended to ask Mr Tall if it would be a suitable stage costume to wear if Mr Crepsley ever decided to give me a part in his act.**

 **For a long time neither of us spoke to the other, Mr Crepsley just sat in his armchair and stared at me. Eventually I broke the silence.**

 **"Have you got a problem? You can't stop staring at me." I asked.**

 **"I do not mean to stare but I have never seen anybody looking so beautiful as you do right now, even my mate could not pull off wearing an outfit like that." Mr Crepsley answered.**

 **"How badly do you want me?" I asked playfully with a smile.**

 **"Come over here and find out." Mr Crepsley replied lustfully.**

 **I went over to where Mr Crepsley was sitting, I sat down on his lap and I could feel his heart beating quicker than usual. I also noticed a bulge in his trousers that wasn't normally there, he had been turned on by seeing me in my outfit and I wasn't going to waste this opportunity to have some fun.**

 **Mr Crepsley kissed me, it was lustful and it lasted. I could feel his hands touching my exposed skin which turned me on also. I was on top of him kissing him deeply. The armchair was too small to use so we went over to Mr Crepsley's coffin and got into it, it was much bigger and more comfortable to lay down in than I had anticipated.**

 **As we kissed I could feel Mr Crepsley touching my skin and in doing so I was getting turned on as much as he was, he removed his trousers and his boxer shorts. I could see his erection and how well endowed he was, my red velvet outfit consisted of a top and a miniskirt, I whipped my pants off but I left my miniskirt on. Mr Crepsley was on top of me and we were kissing each other, I knew that it would be only a matter of time before he attempted to penetrate me.**

 **"Are we going to have sex?" I asked.**

 **"That is the idea unless you do not want to have sex. I will not force you to." Mr Crepsley replied.**

 **"I think it is about time that we satisfied each other's lust." I said suggestively and that is exactly what we did.**

 **The sex was beyond description, I'd never had it so good. I tried my best to keep the noise down but it was nearly impossible to do that. Luckily for us Mr Crepsley's trailer was parked away from the main campsite under some trees, the trees provided additional shelter from the sunlight. The angle that the trailer had been parked at meant that very little if any sunlight could come through the trailer's window. The window also had opaque curtains as an extra precaution for when the trailer was moving.**

 **As Mr Crepsley's trailer wasn't parked near the main campsite we hoped that none of the performers were nearby or they'd have heard us having sex. We were snuggled up together, my head was resting on Mr Crepsley's chest and he had his arm around me.**

 **Mr Crepsley was very well built and all of his muscles were well defined, he had abs to die for. When I saw his body for the first time it drove me wild because he was hot! In fact he was damn right gorgeous and when we had sex he made me scream out his name which was something that nobody had ever made me do before.**

 **"Has your lust for me been satisfied now?" Mr Crepsley asked me quietly.**

 **"Yes Larten I think that you have satisfied me very nicely." I replied as I leaned in for a kiss but I didn't get one.**

 **"I do feel a little bit guilty because you have a mate, we shouldn't have done what we have just done." I admitted.**

 **"It does not matter, I am sure that my mate is doing exactly the same thing so do not feel guilty about it, just enjoy it." Mr Crepsley explained.**

 **"May I kiss you?" I asked innocently, "You are so good at it."**

 **Mr Crepsley did not reply he just kissed me passionately, our tongues intermingled as I ran my hand through Larten's crop of hair and he had his hand on my neck. We just seemed to click and now that we had slept together the bond between us was stronger than it had been before.**

 **"I think I love you Larten." I said between kisses.**

 **"You either love me or you do not love me, there is no thinking involved." Larten snapped at me.**

 **"I'm in love with you and as such I pledge myself to you and only you." I vowed between more kisses.**

 **"I accept your pledge, you and I are now mates. I will end my blessed mateship and then we will make our mateship official. You suit me far better than my soon to be ex blessed mate suits me." Larten replied as he kissed me again, his kisses were full of lust.**

 **I settled into Larten's arms and we lay there in his coffin together, we kissed and Larten whispered things to me that nobody had ever said to me before. He was actually very sweet and loving, the way he treated me was far better than what any of my former human boyfriends had ever treated me.**

 **I noticed that Mr Crepsley had removed the mateship ring from his finger, he put it away safely in one of his storage drawers. Mr Crepsley also had a much smaller ring that he wore on a chain around his neck. I watched as he slid the ring off of its chain, afterwards Mr Crepsley placed the ring on my finger.**

 **"This is a gift for you, it is a symbol of our connection to one another." Larten said as he gave me the ring which sparkled in the light.**

 **"Thank you, it is beautiful. Where did it come from?" I asked, I felt really happy.**

 **"I bought it for you, I was just waiting for the right moment to give it to you." Larten answered.**

 **"You are very kind, I do not deserve such gifts." I muttered quietly.**

 **"I disagree, a gift should not be earnt or deserved but be given out of love or friendship to those who you care about." Larten replied before he kissed me yet again.**

 **We were kissing each other and then there was a knock on the door of our trailer.**

 **"Ignore it, they'll soon go away." I said cheekily.**

 **"I cannot ignore it, it could be important." Larten informed me as he got up to answer the door. I got dressed quickly as did Larten, he couldn't answer the door naked after all. I sat in his armchair with his cloak around me, it was soft and it smelt like him too. I liked how he smelt odd as that sounds.**

 **An unknown man walked into Larten's trailer and Larten was pleased to see him for they greeted each other warmly. They seemed to be old friends that knew each other very well.**

 **"Anna this is Gavnur Purl, he is a very good friend of mine." Larten clarified as he introduced his friend Gavnur Purl to me.**

 **"It is good to meet you, are you a vampire too?" I asked.**

 **"Yes, I am a serving Vampire General. I have some important news and other matters to discuss with Larten." Gavnur stated before he asked "Are you a vampiress Anna?"**

 **"I am a half vampire. My best friend and I ran into some trouble so we made a deal with Larten. He saved my life but in exchange we both had to become his assistants." I explained.**

 **"Larten is a womaniser and a flirt, he has women on their knees begging him to give them pleasures that are not of this world wherever he goes." Gavnur told me with a smirk and then Larten glared at him.**

 **"Gavnur I would appreciate it if you did not defame my character even if it is only meant in jest. My new mate may get the wrong impression about me and that I do not want." Larten commented.**

 **"Larten already has a mate, he cannot take another mate as he has entered into a blessed mateship." Gavnur told me.**

 **"That arrangement is soon to be dissolved, we have been separated for more than a year now." Larten asserted confidently.**

 **"Oh right, I was unaware of that fact, I am sorry for prying into your private affairs." Gavnur apologised.**

 **"I thought that you came here on business, you have not travelled all this way to find out about who I may or may not be mating with. Tell me why you are here Gavnur." Larten remarked.**

 **"As you know a few years ago I came to visit you before at the Cirque Du Freak when you and Darren were here. What I told you at that time has something to do with what I have to tell you now. There is another threat and this one is more dangerous, there is more than one of them this time and they've set up a base where Murlough had his base." Gavnur explained to Larten.**

 **"I see, I guess that I shall have no choice but to go there and deal with them in the same way that I dealt with Murlough." Larten sighed.**

 **"Regretfully yes, I believe that this will be the course of action which you will have to take. I knew you would want to know about this, it is your city after all." Gavnur replied.**

 **"I am grateful for your concern Gavnur, I will go there and I will teach those traitors a lesson that they shall never forget." Larten asserted.**

 **"Excuse me but what exactly are you talking about?" I asked, I was both worried by this news and curious too.**

 **"It is a long and complicated story however I will tell you all about it. In simple terms the Vampire Clan has an enemy, they are called Vampaneze. There is a truce that exists between the two clans however every once in a while a few vampaneze rebels will stir up trouble, they wish to break the truce and cause another war between our clan and theirs. A few years ago when Darren was my assistant he, Evra and I went to the city where I grew up as a human and we dealt with an evil, mad vampaneze named Murlough. We killed him because he was dangerous to everybody he met. Vampaneze kill when they feed from humans by drinking all of their blood. That is the main reason why vampires and vampaneze fight, we do not believe in killing humans when we drink from them but the vampaneze do. There have been many battles faught between our two clans because of this issue. Gavnur has just informed me that a group of vampaneze have set up home in the same disused sewer tunnels where Murlough lived and they are causing problems. It is now my job to go to the city, locate them and kill them all before they kill too many of the humans who are living in the city. I feel like I should protect this city and the humans who live there because I grew up there. You and I will have to leave the Cirque Du Freak and travel to my old home in order to deal with this threat, now you are aware of the situation and this is what Gavnur and I were discussing." Larten concluded.**

 **"It sounds like a serious thing that needs to be dealt with sooner rather than later." I contributed.**

 **"I agree, I could not have put it better myself." Larten concurred.**

 **"When do we leave?" I enquired.**

 **"We must leave as soon as we are able to, the longer we leave it the more damage these traitors will cause." Larten disclosed.**

 **"I understand, will Sarah be coming with us?" I asked quickly.**

 **"I do not see how we can go without her. Sarah is my assistant as well as you so both of you must travel with me and assist me, that was the deal we made in exchange for your life." Larten reminded me.**

 **"I understand, I will go with you willingly and I am sure that Sarah will not object to coming with us either. I still have to tell her about us as it is only fair that she knows." I conceded.**

 **"I agree." Larten confirmed.**

 **It was at this point that Gavnur left as he had General's business to attend to, he left Larten to deal with this newest problem. At least Larten had Sarah and I to assist him in whatever way we could. Neither of us could fight hand to hand or use weaponry as we hadn't been trained but Larten fixed that, he gave us tuition. He made Sarah and I fight each other in order to train both of us, if we couldn't fight or defend ourselves then we wouldn't last long in combat with the vampaneze.**

 **When we could fight well enough Larten decided that it was time for us to leave the Cirque Du Freak. The time had come for us to prove ourselves, we were vampires after all. Killing vampaneze was one way to gain a good standing in the clan and earn the respect of our fellow clan members. The clan would not accept weak vampires or vampires of poor standing.**

 **I was afraid, I didn't like the idea of fighting an enemy that was likely to be twice as strong as me and double my size, I was however ready to do my part and if I died then I would die a warrior's death. I hoped that Larten would be able to guard us, he was after all a very experienced and seasoned warrior. I hoped that he would be able to take out most if not all of the vampaneze on his own, we were just there to back Larten up if necessary.**

 **We had been given one short sword each and a concealed dagger too, Larten had his long sword and a large hunting knife. We weren't able to carry the weapons with us to the city for fear of being arrested by the human police. To solve this issue Gavnur had flit to the city with our weaponry so that it would be there waiting for us when we arrived.**


	8. Chapter 7

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 7:**

 **Travelling to our new destination took us a while, it was a long way away from where the Cirque Du Freak had been performing. We had to change trains twice and then we used a coach to take us the rest of the way. I had booked rooms for us in a hotel, it was in the city centre. Coincidentally the hotel that I had booked was exactly the same one that Larten had stayed in before. He had stayed in two separate hotels when he had come to the city to deal with Murlough. Back then he had Darren and Evra to protect and now he had the both of us to take care of.**

 **Larten and I shared a hotel room and Sarah had her own room. It was cheaper this way and if anything happened to Larten then I wanted to make the most of our time together.**

 **We had a shower in our room so that if we had to search in the sewers then we had somewhere to wash. Sewers were filthy and smelly even if they were disused.**

 **We took a day to rest because the long journey had sapped our energy, we needed to be in top condition and fighting fit before we started hunting for the elusive vampaneze. They could hide and if they had the run of the sewers then they could go anywhere they liked. The sun wouldn't affect them down there.**

 **Larten and myself stayed in bed for the entire day, we were happy to have each other for company. We watched the TV and then we slept together, Larten wanted to make sure that I would never forget him just in case he was mortally wounded which was a possibility.**

 **"I don't want to fight, I don't want to die." I admitted.**

 **"Anna, I swear that I will not allow anything to harm you. I will give my life for yours if I have to. Do not be afraid of things which have not yet come to pass." Larten advised me.**

 **"Every time I look at you I fall in love with you even more. I just want to live with you in peace." I replied.**

 **"I understand that but whilst the vampaneze are alive no vampire will ever know peace." Larten told me.**

 **"If anything happened to you it'd break my heart." I cried and a few tears welled up in my eyes.**

 **"Nothing will happen to me darling, I will make sure to slaughter every vampaneze that has the nerve to cross our path." Larten assured me.**

 **"I hope so, I could not bare to watch you fall. It'd hurt me too much." I sobbed quietly.**

 **"You must love me, nobody says words like this unless they are in love." Larten decided.**

 **"Of course I'm in love with you, who wouldn't be? You are everything that I hoped you'd be. You're sweet and kind, protective, caring, you treat me well and to top it off you're a very good lover." I confessed.**

 **"I had no idea that you felt this way about me. I knew that you loved me but not to this extent, I have never had anybody be this open with me before. Even my former blessed mate did not tell me how she felt, I think that she was with me just for the sex. Nothing else mattered to her as long as the sex was good." Larten claimed.**

 **"The sex is good, it is better than good but that is just one small part of any relationship. Relationships should be based upon a deep emotional connection that you have with somebody. They shouldn't just be about satisfying carnal lust." I remarked.**

 **"I agree with you, that is why we get along together so well. You are not only after one thing, you do not ask me for money constantly either unlike my former blessed mate." Larten replied.**

 **"No offence darling but your former mate sounds like a user and it sounds as though she took advantage of you too. I would never ask you for money or use you like that." I promised.**

 **"I know you would not use me and I believe that you genuinely are in love with me, that makes a change to the women I normally meet." Larten acknowledged.**

 **"Believe me when I tell you how deeply I love you, I cannot picture my life without you in it. You mean everything to me." I confirmed.**

 **"I love you too sweetheart, I do not say things like this very often but when I do say it I mean every word of what I say, in this dark world you are my light." Larten responded, then he pulled me close to him and kissed me with such passion that I could barely breathe. We made love then and there, neither of us held back either. It was indescribable, I saw stars and it was almost as if I had entered the realms of Paradise whilst still being alive. I couldn't explain it any other way. After we were through I settled into Larten's arms and I slept in them, he didn't mind at all.**

 **When we woke up Larten got out of bed and had a shower, I did the same thing. We ate something after we had showered.**

 **"I had better get tracking. Now that we have rested we should start searching for the vampaneze before they kill again." Larten announced.**

 **"I understand, do you want me to join you?" I asked.**

 **"No, I can track them quicker by myself, if I need you then I shall flit back here and get you." Larten replied.**

 **"I'll miss you when you're gone." I sighed sadly.**

 **"I know you will miss me, parting is never easy to do even if it is only for a short time." Larten answered in reply.**

 **Larten kissed me, he scooped me up into his arms bridal style and he carried me over to the bed. He placed me on the bed and then we lay down next to each other, we were still naked from where we had showered.**

 **Larten kissed me passionately, we rolled over until he was on top of me and then he penetrated me. I lay there as Larten made love to me for the second time that night, it was as if he knew that this could be our last time so he made it extra special. If anything happened to him then I'd have this memory of our last moments together that I could use to remember him by.**

 **"As much as I love laying here with you I really must start finding these vampaneze. I have to kill them all before they cause any more problems." Larten said as he got up from the bed and dressed himself, I got dressed also but my body was still shaking a little bit from where I had orgasmed. I found it hard to think, all I could think about was Larten and how our bodies had become as one when we made love to each other.**

 **Larten left me alone in the hotel, he said that it was safer for me to stay behind. I decided to go out and explore the city with Sarah, we thought that maybe we could go to the movies or something that we never normally got to do.**

 **"There's a new X Men movie on, we could watch that if you like." I suggested.**

 **"Yeah sure why not?" Sarah concurred with me, "We can buy a giant bucket of popcorn and fizzy drinks. We'd be just like regular people again."**

 **"That sounds awesome, I miss doing normal human things." I admitted.**

 **"I don't miss my human life one bit, being a vampire is so much better than being a human." Sarah replied.**

 **"Some parts are awesome and some parts aren't so great. Are you ready for battle? Could you look a vampaneze in the eye and kill it?" I asked.**

 **"I would give it a run for its money, I am not bad when it comes to using a sword now." Sarah boasted.**

 **"No you aren't bad but somebody will always be better than you. It only takes one mistake or one sloppy block and you're done for." I replied honestly, Sarah knew that I was right.**

 **"I will keep training and practising until I am better, there is always room to improve. Mr Crepsley taught me that." Sarah added.**

 **"Larten is full of good advice, we should listen to him and do what he tells us to do." I concluded.**

 **"I wonder why Mr Crepsley hasn't told me to use his first name, I still have to call him Mr Crepsley." Sarah mentioned to me.**

 **"Maybe it is because he is my mate, we are sort of dating you know." I disclosed.**

 **"You and Mr Crepsley are a couple?" Sarah asked, she sounded shocked.**

 **"Yes we are a couple, didn't you hear us earlier when we were having sex?" I asked, I was embarrased.**

 **"Nope, I wasn't in the hotel. I've been out in the city exploring pretty much since we arrived here. I put my suitcase in my room and then I went out. I wondered why you two were sharing a room, I thought it was just to save money." Sarah responded, she was clearly surprised by my revelation.**

 **"There is only one bed in our room and we have a shower too." I said blushing furiously.**

 **"Are you in love?" Sarah asked bluntly.**

 **"Yes, I would say that we're in love. We've had sex twice since we've been in this hotel and Larten bought me this ring too." I said as I showed Sarah my ring. Sarah's eyes widened in surprise when she saw it, I couldn't believe that she hadn't noticed it before.**

 **"It is a gorgeous ring, you're so lucky. I wish that Mr Crepsley would buy me something too." Sarah complained.**

 **"Maybe he will, it is your birthday coming up soon after all." I replied.**

 **"That is true, maybe I'll get something from him then." Sarah agreed.**

 **"I am sure that Larten will sort something, he's very kind and loving. When you get to know him better he'll show you just how sweet he can be and his kisses are not from this world. Every one of those kisses makes my head spin and my heart pound faster." I smirked.**

 **"I can imagine, is Mr Crepsley a good lover?" Sarah asked, wondering.**

 **"Yes, he is a very good lover. I have no complaints. Put it this way Sarah, Larten has the power to make me see stars, touch the sky and enter Paradise whilst still being alive." I explained.**

 **"That sounds amazing, if only I could experience those sensations with somebody I'd be happy." Sarah mumbled quietly.**

 **"Are we going to watch X Men or not?" I asked.**

 **"Yes, I'll grab my purse and then we can go." Sarah replied, she met me downstairs in the hotel lobby and then we left together. Sarah led the way because she had already located the cinema, it wasn't far away and with our vampiric speed we reached it in a couple of minutes.**

 **We queued up outside whilst we waited to buy our tickets. The queue was long but it moved pretty quickly as queues go. We bought our tickets, drinks and snacks and then we went into the room where the film was being shown. The film was really good, I enjoyed it a lot and Sarah did too. We stuffed ourselves with popcorn and fizzy drinks then for good measure we grabbed a take-away KFC box meal just before we went back to the hotel. It was one of those large boneless bucket meals with fries and it also came with a two litre bottle of Pepsi. We ate as much as we could and I left the rest for Larten, no doubt he'd be hungry when he came back from tracking the vampaneze.**

 **It must have been near to dawn when Larten returned to the hotel, our film had been an evening showing so we didn't get back to the hotel until eleven at night. I was in bed but I couldn't sleep because of all the sugary foods and junk that I'd eaten. I didn't care though because I had missed eating junk food so much, it had been months since I had enjoyed a bag of pick n' mix or popcorn so I went overboard and ate as much as I could manage.**

 **"Did you enjoy yourselves?" Larten asked me as he got into bed next to me.**

 **"Yes I did, Sarah and I went to the cinema together. We watched a movie, ate loads of junk food and grabbed a take-away before we came back here." I replied.**

 **"I have not found any trace of the vampaneze so far, I was down in the tunnels for a long time. Maybe they have moved on already." Larten explained.**

 **"It is almost dawn so maybe we should get some sleep." I suggested.**

 **"I am well aware of when the dawn is, we still have another thirty seven minutes before the sun appears." Larten snapped.**

 **"Sorry, I was just making conversation." I responded apologetically.**

 **"I know, I am just tired and annoyed that I have not found any trails or clues yet that will lead me to what I am looking for." Larten conceded.**

 **"I understand how annoying that can be, at least we are together though. I have told Sarah about us, she doesn't mind at all. It is her birthday coming up soon, I've already bought her a presant." I hinted.**

 **"I will find her something special, I have an eye for picking out gifts." Larten responded.**

 **"I know that, you got my ring spot on. I love it so much and I haven't taken it off since you gave it to me." I smiled.**

 **"I am happy to hear you say that, I picked it out for you especially." Larten commented, he pulled me close to him so that we could snuggle into one another. I always slept in Larten's arms, it made me feel safe and loved. These were two feelings that I hadn't really experienced as a human.**

 **"Forget the vampaneze for now and just lose yourself in me." I whispered in Larten's ear, he turned his head to face me and we kissed. I lost all concept of time when we kissed, it was like time stood still and we were caught in the moment. We kissed each other for what seemed like an eternity, neither of us wanted to stop. Eventually we'd have to but we carried it on for as long as we could.**

 **I pulled the covers up over us and I made myself comfortable, our hotel bed was soft and warm. We tried really hard not to damage the sheets with our long nails, I also tried not to make too much noise when we were having sex because of the other hotel guests. We had sex frequently like most couples and I'm sure we weren't the only guests in the hotel that were sleeping together. Our super sharp vampire hearing could detect the rooms in which people were copulating even if they weren't making any audible noises, we could hear their heartbeats and their breathing.**

 **"Almost every double room in this hotel has people in it and they're all at it like rabbits." I whispered.**

 **"I can hear them too." Larten replied.**

 **"Are we going to join them?" I asked naughtily.**

 **"If you mean to ask if we will be having sex again then yes we will be, I think that I can make you scream louder than any of the other couples are." Larten acknowledged.**

 **"I don't doubt it." I concluded.**

 **I adjusted my position so that I was laying out flat on my back, I opened my legs to give Larten full access to my body. He played with me and he teased me before finally he penetrated me, each time he went inside me it made me gasp but as I was really turned on he was able to slip in and out of me like a dream until he made me orgasm.**

 **The day passed by in a blur, we just stayed in bed cuddled up to each other. I slept quite well, Larten slept too. I found it hard to sleep in the daytime because I wasn't used to being nocturnal yet. As I was half human I still wanted to be awake during the day and asleep at night but as a vampire I had to reverse it.**

 **I wasn't too bothered because I liked to go out and do normal things when Larten was asleep, I could walk around in the sunlight but Larten couldn't. I went to museums and I went to the zoo with Sarah, there was no point being stuck in the hotel all day doing nothing.**

 **Sarah started going out a lot more often too, I noticed her hanging out with a group of boys that lived near to where the hotel was. Sarah knew that it was dangerous to associate with humans but she had always been a rebel, I watched her kicking a football around with the group and she had amazing ball control. She showed those boys exactly how good she was, her vampiric speed and balance helped her out. I was watching her from the bathroom window in the hotel room and I decided to join her because it looked like fun.**

 **"Hey Sarah, pass the ball to me." I said as I joined the group. Sarah passed the ball to me and I began to show off my own set of skills, the boys were really impressed.**

 **"I told you that girls can play football didn't I?" one of the boys said to another, younger boy.**

 **"Showing off with a ball is not playing football." the bigger boy replied.**

 **"Alright, we'll play a game with you. There's ten of us in total so that makes a five-a-side squad with one girl on each team. That's the fairest way to play." I said as I made the ball hit the back of the net with a well aimed shot.**

 **"You're on, the winning team gets twenty quid how about that?" the biggest boy offered.**

 **"That makes four pounds for each team member, that's nothing. How about fifty pounds? That is ten pounds for each player." Sarah suggested.**

 **"I can't afford that, I'm only fifteen." the boy complained.**

 **"We can afford it, my friend and I are rich." Sarah boasted.**

 **"I get twenty pounds a month in pocket money and the rest I earn by doing odd jobs for people, I just spent most of my savings on a new playstation four game anyway." the boy explained to us.**

 **"Oh, I don't have a playstation. My boyfriend and I travel a lot so we don't carry heavy electronics with us." I said quickly.**

 **"Are we playing or not?" Sarah said impatiently.**

 **"Yep, let's go. Now we have to decide who is on which team. We have different coloured vests to wear so we know who is on who's team." the biggest boy replied.**

 **"I don't mind who's team I am on as long as it is a good game. The best thing to do is to have one of the older boys in each team because they know the rules. The others can then decide which team they wish to join." I suggested.**

 **"What about us? We're twins." said one of the twin boys who looked roughly sixteen in age. He was wearing a football shirt, shorts and trainers.**

 **"You can stick together or we can have one of you on each team." I answered quickly.**

 **"We'll split, John you go onto the blue team and I'll stick with the black team." said one of the twin boys, I didn't know his name.**

 **We put our team vests on over the tops of our clothing, we had an astro-turf pitch to play on with nets at each end. A sign at one end said that the once busy shopping square had been turned into a sports area by the city council when they had received a huge grant from the National Lottery. The grant was meant for promoting children's health and wellbeing by providing things such as sport pitches and youth centres in rundown parts of the city that needed to be redeveloped.**

 **We started to play the five-a-side game and to everything was fine, we passed the ball, tackled the opposite players to gain the ball and the blue team even scored twice. Sarah and myself were trying hard not to use our vampiric speed too much. We wanted to make it a fair game for both teams and not a whitewash. Of course me and her could have put any number of goals into the net but we didn't, it would have looked suspicious if a couple of girls could outplay a team of boys even with one girl on each team.**

 **We didn't know if the vampaneze were watching us, they had eyes and ears everywhere. We were very careful about where we went, what we did, who we spoke to and how late we stayed outside. Of course none of that mattered if they had picked up on our trail and that is exactly what they did...**


	9. Chapter 8

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 8:**

 **When the game was over and the boys had gone Sarah and I walked back to our hotel, it was across the street from where we had been playing football all afternoon. I was just getting ready to cross the road at the zebra crossing when I saw something peculiar. I walked over to a drain, it had a cover on it but it was a barred one that you can see through. I looked down and then I saw him, he was like nobody I'd ever seen before. He had dark purple skin, long, sharp nails and red around his eyes, he was wearing a brown T Shirt and black trousers too. I thought he looked like a creature from another planet.**

 **"Who are you?" I called down to him, I didn't know if he was trapped or not.**

 **"That's none of your business. If you come one step closer I'll rip your throat out." The strange looking man called back to me.**

 **"I'd like to see you try, come on then if you think you're hard enough. Fight me." I jeered back, my adrenaline was pulsing through my veins.**

 **At that moment I saw a blur of red and in seconds the purple skinned man was no longer standing up but he was on the ground bleeding badly from a wound in his side.**

 **"Vampaneze scum, how dare you even look at my mate." I heard a familiar voice say with fury, it was Larten and by the looks of things we had found the vampaneze.**

 **"Larten, I'm up here. The sun hasn't quite set yet." I called down to him.**

 **"Do not worry, I am safe from its rays down here. I have picked up on the trail of the vampaneze, there are more than I thought but I can handle it." Larten said as he ripped off the drain cover and jumped up out of the sewer tunnel so that he could hold me close to him.**

 **"Are you OK? Did that worthless piece of scum threaten you?" Larten asked me as he looked down at the now dead vampaneze.**

 **"He said he'd rip my throat out." I replied.**

 **"He will not be ripping any throats out now, he is dead. We should go back to the hotel and then I will tell you everything." Larten said as we crossed the road and entered our hotel.**

 **"Is that thing down there a vampaneze? He looks like pure evil. What's up with his purple skin?" I asked curiously.**

 **"That was a vampaneze, it is now a dead vampaneze. He had purple skin because when you drink blood in the amounts that they do your skin turns purple over time. I cannot believe that scumbag had the nerve to talk to you, how dare they speak to you and threaten you like that?" Larten said angrily as he wiped blood off of his dagger.**

 **"I'm OK, really I am. He didn't even touch me." I said as I tried to calm Larten down, we both had adrenaline pulsing through us.**

 **"If they even so much as look at you I will make them wish that they had never been born." Larten reassured me.**

 **"You are very protective of me, I like that." I smiled.**

 **"I gave you my word that I would not allow anything bad to happen to you. You are safe with me." Larten answered as he scooped me up into his arms, we kissed and then Larten went to have a shower because he had been in the sewer tunnels for hours. Larten had blood on his clothes, the bloodstains were caused by Larten killing the vampaneze that I had spotted through the drain cover.**

 **I was hungry so whilst Larten was showering I went downstairs to the hotel restaurant and had dinner, it wasn't bad either. They had curry with rice, fish and chips, pasta and a dessert cabinet that went round in a circle. I had a good look at all of the cakes and puddings that were on display, I picked out what I wanted, sat down and they brought it over to me. I paid for the meal out of my wages from the Cirque Du Freak. I would not dare to ask Larten for money when I had plenty of my own to spend on things like food. We tried to make everything as fair as possible as far as money was concerned.**

 **After I had eaten I returned to my hotel room and watched some TV, Larten watched it with me. I introduced him to The Simpsons as he had never watched it or heard of it, he wasn't a fan of TV either but Sarah and I loved it so he put up wih it to keep us happy. After The Simpsons had finished (It was the episode where Selma marries Troy McClure) I settled myself into Larten's arms on the sofa that was in our hotel room, Sarah took it as her cue to leave us in peace so she went back to her own room and then we were alone which was how I liked it.**

 **"What is the plan when it comes to the vampaneze?" I asked as I made myself more comfortable.**

 **"There is no plan, I will slaughter all who cross my path." Larten replied seriously.**

 **"Do you need Sarah and I to help you or can you manage to find them on your own?" I enquired but Larten had other things on his mind.**

 **"I have been tracking a human, this human has been marked for death by a vampaneze. My plan is to strike and kill the vampaneze before the vampaneze can kill the human. I learnt years ago to tell if a human is the target of the vampaneze or not." Larten told me as he unzipped my skirt and pulled down my pants.**

 **"What are you doing?" I asked.**

 **"I am going to do something that I have not done to you yet, you will love it." Larten said as he led me over to the bed.**

 **I lay down with my legs wide, I was expecting to have sex again but instead of penetrating me straight away Larten lay down on his chest, he positioned his head between my legs right where my entrance was and then he began to lick me in my most private area. I gasped because it sent shockwaves of pleasure through my body, I was shaking and within a few moments I writhing around in sheer orgasmic ecstasy. I had never experienced anything like this before, it was enough to make me cry out for more from my lover who obliged me by slamming into me hard and fast until I saw stars once more. This wasn't making love this was fucking, this was purely about pleasure, lust and satisfying our insatiable appetites that never went away. I went on top and I rocked my hips back and forth until we both orgasmed in unison, I could feel Larten's juices flooding into me but it just made it feel even better. If Sarah hadn't heard us before then she definately would have heard us now along with the other hotel guests but I didn't care.**

 **It wasn't until the morning when I went down to have breakfast that I overheard some of the other guests and hotel staff talking about me. I ignored it but some of their comments had been quite funny. I ate my breakfast and went back up to my room, I was hoping to watch the news on the TV just in case I needed to be aware of anything.**

 **I watched the news and it made me go pale with fear. The news reported that four corpses had been located, they had been found drained of blood but with no visible wounds or broken bones.**

 **"Larten, wake up it's important." I said as I gently shook him to wake him up. Larten sat bolt upright in bed, he hated being woken up.**

 **"What is it?" Larten said, he was annoyed.**

 **"It is what I heard on the news this morning. The police have found corpses and they've been drained of blood." I revealed, I sat there and waited for Larten to tell me what he was going to do about it.**

 **"This has happened before, roughly ten years ago as you know Darren and I came here with Evra and we slaughtered a mad vampaneze. That vampaneze alone drained six people of their blood and now the same thing is happening again. I must put a stop to it." Larten concluded.**

 **"I agree, maybe if you go down into the sewers now before the sun gets too strong you could catch them off guard and slaughter them whilst they sleep." I suggested.**

 **"No, I should wait and kill the one that has been tracking the human first and then kill the others. I know what I am doing." Larten replied.**

 **"OK, do it your way. You have experience in these matters but I don't." I answered.**

 **"All you have to do is stay away from the sewers and the drains, they would not dare to attack in daylight and I do not believe that they know where we are. We should change hotels though just to be sure." Larten said decisively.**

 **"I agree, I'll tell Sarah to pack her bags. I think the guests have probably had enough of us keeping them awake anyway." I advised.**

 **"I am sure that you screaming my name out loud is not what they wish to hear, you need to learn some self control." Larten remarked.**

 **"I can't help it, you pounded into me so deeply that having an orgasm was guarenteed." I replied as I blushed a little bit.**

 **"I am highly skilled, I know how to satisfy women." Larten bragged.**

 **"I agree, you are a very good lover." I admitted without any hesitation.**

 **"Am I only very good? Am I not better than that?" Larten asked me,**

 **"You are incredible, you are perfection and you are the best lover that I've ever had." I answered honestly.**

 **"How many have there been before me?" Larten enquired curiously.**

 **"I don't know to be honest. I think there's been ten or fifteen guys that I have slept with but none of them were any good." I confessed.**

 **"Am I the only one who has been able to satisfy you?" Larten asked me. I blushed furiously when Larten asked me this question as I hadn't been prepared for it.**

 **"Yes, you are the only one who has ever truly satisfied me." I conceded, "Do I satisfy you?"**

 **"You do not have much experience but you do a good job. I like it when you are on top of me." Larten responded.**

 **"I am much younger than you are so it will take me a while to learn what you really like, I only know the basics after all." I stated.**

 **"You will learn because I will teach you, it takes years to become good in bed." Larten pointed out.**

 **"Hadn't we better check out of here and go to another hotel?" I suggested quickly changing the subject.**

 **"Yes, that is best. Hopefully the vampaneze will not be able to locate us and you will be safe. Sarah can take care of herself but you need me." Larten declared.**

 **"She is pretty independant, I haven't seen her recently. I think she's gone out to explore the city some more." I added.**

 **"I hope that she will not be out all day, I need to tell her which hotel we are going to next or she will not be able to locate us." Larten acknowledged as he threw his cloak over his head and vanished. He could move really fast if he needed to, he was far quicker than I was at moving.**

 **I packed up my suitcase and my backpack, I swiped a couple of towels from the hotel room and then I checked out. I paid the bill in full (I'd get the money back from Larten later on) then I left to find yet another place to sleep and eat. I didn't know how long we were going to be in this city either. It was not a bad place though, I quite liked it.**

 **A couple of hours later I had unpacked my bag in my new hotel room and settled in, the bed and shower in this room were much nicer than in the previous hotel so I was happy to stay here. Larten had followed my trail, I didn't even know that I had left one.**

 **"Your scent helped me to locate you. I am good at tracking scent trails." Larten explained.**

 **"If I got lost could you find me by my scent alone?" I asked.**

 **"I have no doubt that I would be able to track you down and rescue you by following your scent traces." Larten answered assuredly.**

 **"What do I smell like?" I asked, I was curious.**

 **"You smell like a unique mixture of things, you smell like me, you smell like this room and lots of other things too. I could walk down a line of one hundred women blindfolded and I would be able to pick you out of the line with ease." Larten boasted confidently.**

 **"When you live in close proximity with somebody all the time you do tend to end up smelling like that person. I mean we sleep as close to each other as we can, we also have a lot of sex so I'm sure that we both smell of each other's bodies." I answered.**

 **"Does that bother you?" Larten said, he seemed to be questioning me.**

 **"No, not at all. I like how you smell. When I am near to you I feel protected and I know that nothing bad will happen to me." I disclosed honestly.**

 **"I am going to bed, wake me up when it is sunset." Larten instructed me.**

 **"Alright, I've covered the bill in our previous hotel. I paid your share as you weren't there so you owe me half of the bill for our shared room and food. Sarah paid for her own room, I need to go and find her so that she knows where we are." I revealed to Larten.**

 **"How much did it cost?" Larten asked me.**

 **"Our total bill was two hundred and thirty nine pounds and thirty seven pence. I'll round it up to make it easier so you owe me one hundred and twenty pounds and twenty pence exactly." I replied.**

 **"My wallet is over there." Larten said pointing it out to me so I picked it up and gave it to him, Larten took a bunch of notes out of it and handed them to me.**

 **"This is too much." I said as I handed most of the money back to him.**

 **"Keep it, I do not need it." Larten insisted.**

 **"Are you sure?" I asked beaming.**

 **"Yes, keep it and buy yourself something nice with it." Larten replied as he got into bed and went to sleep, it was nearly midday and the sun was at its most powerful. I left Larten to sleep the day away whilst I went out to search for Sarah. I couldn't find her anywhere.**

 **"Sarah, where are you?" I called out into the street, I walked around and back to the places that we had already visited. I was hoping that Sarah had gone to the zoo as we hadn't finished looking around it when we had been there previously.**

 **I searched everywhere for Sarah but there was no trace of her anywhere, then I suddenly realised that maybe the vampaneze had got her and were holding her captive or worse. I couldn't risk searching the sewers on my own without Larten and no weapons. I did however know of one place that I could start hunting for clues and that was the abattoir. It had been shut down for repairs to the saws and other machinery. Some workers were still there to pack up the meat that had already been cut and processed. The meat had been cut up before the machinery had broken down. I waited until the workers had left for the day because then it would be easier to break into the buildings. I didn't want to be seen by anybody for obvious reasons.**

 **I was up in the attic where all the old records and insurance documents were kept, I hid there until the abattoir's main lights had been switched off. I exited the attic and I hid behind some boxes of bones that had been disgarded, they were meant for the skip. The workers hadn't bothered to carry the heavy boxes down two sets of steps and out the back door of the abattoir where the skip was located. I was waiting until a fat man appeared, he had been marked for death by a vampaneze. Coincidentally another fat man had also been marked for death by Murlough but Larten and Darren had killed Murlough before he had killed the fat man. At least I think that is what I was told, the details were not specific.**

 **I watched closely from behind the boxes, I was looking down at the fat man with his stamp and clipboard, he was checking off the carcasses and passing them off as either fit for human consumption or as pet food only. They were hanging on hooks, the room itself was insulated so that the meat would stay fresh even though it was June and it was hot everywhere else.**

 **I watched the man going about his business, he seemed to be oblivious to my presence in the room. He was so focused upon his work and to be fair there were a lot of carcasses to check, stamp and sign off.**

 **I had no idea if the vampaneze would attack the man whilst he was in the abattoir or not. My plan was stupid but I had to do something. i was planning to either capture a vampaneze and torture him for information or I was going to allow myself to be captured by a vampaneze and hopefully they'd take me to where Sarah was. Larten would get worried and he'd pick up on my trail, that trail would lead Larten straight to me and to the vampaneze, he'd kill them all and rescue both Sarah and myself, we'd leave the city, return to the Cirque Du Freak and get on with our lives. (I told you that my plan was stupid.)**

 **As I was observing the man I suddenly saw something flash past me, my super acute vision could pick out the tiniest movements even if they were done at speed. Then I saw him, it was a vampaneze and he was heading directly for the fat man. I had to muster up all of my strength and courage to prepare myself for a showdown with him, I had none of my weapons on me but Larten had taught me how to fight hand to hand. I wasn't bad at it either but that would have to wait because the vampaneze wasn't alone, he was with Sarah!**

 **I couldn't quite believe what I was witnessing, Sarah was chatting to the vampaneze like they knew each other. The vampaneze didn't have purple skin either so maybe he hadn't drunk enough blood or maybe he had only been blooded recently. Was Sarah a traitor? I didn't know for sure what was going on, I stayed silent and I watched as the vampaneze knocked out the fat man and then he started feeding. I knew that he was a vampaneze and not a vampire because of the red around his eyes and his outfit.**

 **I watched as he motioned to Sarah to come forward and feed so she did, she fed for a while. I was worried that she'd drink too much blood and kill the man but as it turned out she stopped feeding and then the vampaneze finished off what was left. I couldn't understand what Sarah was doing with a vampaneze even though he was only a recently blooded one, it made no sense to me until I saw them together holding hands and kissing each other. If this was how vampaneze took dates out to dinner then I was glad to be a vampiress. I heard them talking.**

 **"Jared, how will this relationship work between us? Our two clans don't get along." Sarah had asked.**

 **"If we show them that we can get along and that we can live together in peace then others will follow our example." Jared replied.**

 **"It is treachery though, I should kill you where you stand. We've just killed a guy." Sarah answered.**

 **"We fed and we shared it, that's it. It is only a big deal if you make it into one." Jared concluded.**

 **"Our blood isn't compatible, you can't live at vampire mountain because of the truce and I can't live with a gang of vampets either." Sarah conceeded ruefully.**

 **"Fuck vampire mountain, fuck the clan, fuck the vampets and just live with me instead. I'll find us an abandoned building and turn it into a love nest, you'll love it trust me." Jared added.**

 **"OK, let me know when you have a place ready for us to move into, I have to go back to my mentor now and my best friend will be wondering where I am also." Sarah explained as she vanished using her vampiric speed whilst Jared was left to dispose of the corpse. I was still in disbelief about what I had witnessed so I too went straight back to the hotel to tell Larten everything before it was too late...**


	10. Chapter 9

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 9:**

 **I raced back to the hotel to explain to Larten what I had witnessed between his assistant and the unknown vampaneze, Jared.**

 **"Larten wake up, it is urgent." I said loudly. Larten woke up and sat up in bed.**

 **"Has the sunset come yet?" Larten asked as he yawned.**

 **"No, it hasn't but I have something very urgent to tell you. It is about Sarah." I blurted out.**

 **"What about Sarah? Where is she?" Larten asked, he sounded annoyed.**

 **"She has betrayed us, she is hanging out with a vampaneze named Jared. I saw them together, they shared the fat man by feeding from him until they drained him dry. Afterwards Jared said something about making a love nest and having Sarah move in with him. I witnessed them kissing each other too, she is a filthy traitor." I explained.**

 **"I do not know what to say, I cannot believe that Sarah would betray us but if you have witnessed it then I must believe you." Larten replied, he was just as shocked as I was at this revelation.**

 **"I saw it with my own eyes, she's on her way back here now." I said, then I asked "What are you going to do about it?"**

 **"I shall question her myself, I need to understand her reasoning behind her actions. It may not be what it seems to be." Larten said thoughtfully.**

 **"Trust me darling, Sarah is bad news." I reiterated.**

 **"We will find out soon enough." Larten concluded.**

 **"Yes, we will find out as soon as she arrives back here." I confirmed.**

 **About twenty minutes after I had divulged everything to Larten about Sarah's actions she arrived back at the hotel. She knocked on our door and I opened it.**

 **"You've got some nerve to show your face around here, you're a disgusting traitor!" I shouted loudly.**

 **"Anna, it isn't what you think it is, let me explain." Sarah began to say but then I cut in;**

 **"I don't want to hear it, you've murdered a man and you've become allies with our enemies. You are vile and you'll die for your treachery if I have anything to say about it."**

 **"Anna, please let Sarah explain herself." Larten said calmly.**

 **"Mr Crepsley I am not a traitor, I am far from it in fact. The truth is that I have fallen in love with a vampaneze named Jared, he loves me too. We've been secretly meeting each other and that's why I'm never around in the hotel. I have been hanging out with Jared. He isn't evil at all, he's only recently been blooded and turned into a full vampaneze. He and I wish to show the two clans that we can get along together, we wish to use our relationship as a stepping stone and in doing so set a good example to the clan. We wish to show the clan that the truce can be kept and that we no longer need to fight each other, we want to be the string that ties the two clans together again." Sarah explained to us.**

 **"I admire your courage and your honesty, I understand what you are trying to acomplish also but the Princes would never permit such a union because of what Kurda did to us. They will never trust a vampaneze ever again or a vampire who has anything to do with them, it is a plan that is doomed to fail. If you get caught by a General then you shall be executed for treason no matter what you say and how would that reflect upon me as your mentor?" Larten asked seriously.**

 **"It wouldn't look good at all, I am sorry Mr Crepsley. I don't know what I was thinking, I was letting my heart rule my head. My intentions are good but like you say my plan to unite the two clans in this way would not work. You haven't told us about Kurda either." Sarah conceded.**

 **"Kurda was on the verge of being made a Vampire Prince, he was preparing for his Investiture and he too had a plan to unite the two clans but his plan failed thanks to Darren discovering it, there was a huge battle, many vampaneze were killed and so were many clan members too. The plan that Kurda had was to kill the other Princes and take control of the Stone of Blood. It is a long story but had he succeeded then the vampaneze would have taken over the mountain and the vampires would have been wiped out." Larten expanded.**

 **"I understand, had I known about Kurda and his treachery I never would have considered uniting our two clans again, I am young and I have a lot to learn." Sarah concluded.**

 **"What will we do about the vampaneze?" I asked.**

 **"There is only Jared and his brother down in the tunnels, the others had enough of sewer pipes and they left to live in another location." Sarah told us.**

 **"Vampaneze are vampaneze at the end of the night. We cannot let them live." Larten sighed.**

 **"Please, don't kill them. Jared is not evil, he means us no harm." Sarah pleaded, she was almost in tears at the thought of Jared being killed.**

 **"What other choices have I got?" Larten asked angrily.**

 **"None, they must die or they'll continue to kill humans and threaten clan members." I added.**

 **"Anna is right, sooner or later all vampaneze will be killed. You were a fool to think that your relationship would be permitted or encouraged." Larten said, he was exasperated.**

 **"I won't see Jared again, I'll finish it with him." Sarah decided.**

 **"That is for the best, do not ever put me in this situation again. Seeing as these two vampaneze have not done anything to me personally I cannot kill them or the truce will be broken. We only kill vampaneze who are mad or dangerous, we cannot kill them without cause just because they are vampaneze. I will let them live but if they cross my path again or if we meet on the battlefield then I will not hesitate to kill them both. Is that clear?" Larten lectured Sarah.**

 **"Yes Mr Crepsley I understand, I am an idiot. If I hadn't have taken Madam Octa from you then neither of us would be here and none of these events would have happened. I am the cause of this mess." Sarah admitted.**

 **"The past is the past, it cannot be changed but only learnt from." Larten quoted.**

 **"I agree with that, truer words were never spoken." I concurred.**

 **"Seba told me that, he has taught me many wise quotes like that. Each one is designed to teach you something." Larten told us, he was a good mentor if nothing else.**

 **"Who is Seba?" I asked out of interest.**

 **"Seba was my mentor, he is the one who blooded me and he has also saved my life more than once." Larten told me.**

 **"I think that you miss your friends in the clan, I'd like to meet them all but I do not want to meet your former blessed mate." I added.**

 **"From what I hear she has already entered into a new mateship term with another General, she is a user and nothing more. I was blinded by love and I could not see her for who she really was." Larten concluded.**

 **"So my position is safe?" I asked nervously.**

 **"Yes, it is safe unless you do something really bad like betray me or the clan." Larten answered.**

 **"I would never do that to you or to the clan. I am loyal." I replied.**

 **"I know that you are loyal, I can tell by your actions how loyal you are." Larten confirmed.**

 **"I do my best to be a good assistant and an even better mate." I stated.**

 **"In that case I am glad that I accepted your pledge to me. I could have refused it but I decided that you are worthy of me and now I seem to have been proven right." Larten replied, he had a look of love in his eyes. He had his lust for me under control at this moment in time.**

 **"Do you favour me above all others?" I asked.**

 **"I do, why?" Larten asked suspiciously.**

 **"I was just curious, I thought that maybe deep down you still have feelings for your former blessed mate." I answered truthfully.**

 **"I do have some feelings for her but they are not of love or desire, they are of regret and disgust. My former mate was a whore and a user, you are neither of those two things. My former mate even slept with two of the Princes whilst she was supposed to be with me, she was only after social standing in the clan. She loved neither me or them." Larten concluded.**

 **"I agree, it must have been embarrasing for you to go through a blessed mateship ceremony only to find out all of these things about her conduct afterwards. I don't think that you should enter into another blessed mateship, if you do then you must be absolutely sure that the person you are entering into it with is the right person." I advised.**

 **"I am aware of these facts, I am not planning to enter into another blessed mateship. It is too much hastle and at the end of it all there is not any specific benefit to it either." Larten conceded.**

 **"So you do not wish to marry me?" I asked, I was upset by this revelation.**

 **"Entering into a blessed mateship is not a marriage. marriage is a human custom. We are pledged to each other is that not enough?" Larten asked me, he sounded irritated.**

 **"If you love me as much as I think you do then surely you'd want to commit to me properly. At the moment you have only made a verbal pledge to me that nobody else witnessed and I cannot prove that it took place." I concluded sadly.**

 **"I have given you a ring, that is proof." Larten responded automatically.**

 **"I didn't think of that." I admitted quickly.**

 **"Anna I love you, I am just not very good at showing my emotions. I have been hurt before so it is difficult for me to express myself, I also find it hard to trust because I have been used by women in the past for money and so on." Larten told me.**

 **"I understand where you are coming from, I was cheated on before too." I acknowledged uncomfortably. My past relationships hadn't lasted very long so most of the time I just had friends with benefits. I hadn't been ready to commit to anybody at that time but now I was ready to commit to Larten, I wasn't sure if he wanted to commit to me or not though. He had given me a ring but without any public delaration or pledge it didn't mean much.**

 **I put my relationship to the back of my mind and I tried to focus upon what to do about the vampaneze, Larten had made a good point but I believed that they were too dangerous to be left alive.**

 **I decided to walk around the city and get some fresh air, the hotel was nice but it was a building and I liked to be outside. I didn't like being confined to a relatively small room. The hotel only had a bar with a restaurant and no leisure facilities. My original idea had been to go bowling with Sarah but after what she had done I couldn't trust her, she had betrayed the clan in my eyes despite what she had said about trying to unite the two clans. Kurda had tried to unite the two clans but he betrayed us as well because he had let the vampaneze into the mountain, he was going to let them have free run of the place but Darren and Gavnur stopped him just in time and he was executed after the battle.**

 **The battle had claimed many victims on both sides but mainly vampaneze had been killed. The clan had lost a few Generals and a couple of their young members but most of the clan had survived relatively unscathed.**

 **At the time the clan believed that Gavnur had been killed down in the tunnels, however the body that the Generals had believed to be Gavnur's was so badly maimed it had been misidentified. Gavnur was alive but after the first conflict in the tunnels he had flit before doubling back to then assist with the fighting later on. He had disguised himself as a vampaneze and he used that as a way of getting close to them so that he could kill them. He was cunning to say the least. The biggest tragedy was the loss of Arra Sails, the clan never forgave the vampaneze for taking out their finest female warrior and they all swore that her death would be avenged. She had been Larten's mate for ten years about sixty years prior to when Larten had presented Darren to the Vampire Council and he often spoke about her, I think that he loved her very much but he had taken other mates after her and he had entered into a blessed mateship with one of those mates. He wouldn't have done that if he had wanted Arra to be his mate again, however she was with Prince Mika Ver Leth at the time. Larten wouldn't have been able to reinstate his mateship with Arra for another term even if he'd wanted to because she was already taken by another mate.**

 **I was happy to be with Larten but I wasn't sure how long our union would last, we were pledged to one another but there was no set time attached to a pledge unlike a formal mateship agreement. A pledge could be ended at any time for any reason but a mateship could only be ended if both parties mutually agreed to end it. Larten had told me that my position was safe but for how long? I figured out that as long as we were sleeping together and spending lots of time together things were fine between us. This was the most intense relationship that I had been in, I hadn't ever felt this much lust or love for anybody before so it was a new experience for me.**

 **I hoped that we would soon be returning to the Cirque Du Freak but I still didn't like the idea of leaving the remaining vampaneze alive. I waited until Larten was asleep, I grabbed my sword and dagger before making the short journey from the hotel to the sewers. My plan was to confront any vampaneze I found, challenge them to single combat and hopefully kill them. The truce wouldn't be broken if a challenge had been laid down, only an unprovoked attack would break the truce. Challenging a vampaneze to one-on-one combat was perfectly acceptable as it was between two individuals, the clans couldn't complain because it wasn't an unprovoked attack.**

 **I found my way down into the disused sewers and I followed the tunnel to the end, turned left and then left again. I marked the walls with arrows using my nails so I wouldn't get lost as the tunnels were like a giant underground labyrinthe. I also tore off a strip from my T Shirt to use as a clue if anything happened to me, I wanted Larten to know exactly where I was if my plan went wrong. He would have to rescue me if the vampaneze captured me but I didn't intend to be captured by them I intended to fight them and kill them...**


	11. Chapter 10

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 10:**

 **I must have been in the sewer tunnels for an hour or two when I heard quiet voices in the distance, I walked quickly to where the voices were coming from. They were getting louder as I was drawing nearer, there were far more than two vampaneze talking, it sounded like they had quite a party going on. I wanted to withdraw whilst I still could but something told me to keep going, a voice inside me was telling me to go ahead with my plan so I continued to go down the tunnel.**

 **I came up against a blocked tunnel that I couldn't pass, I retraced my steps and followed the tunnel opposite to the one that I had just gone down. I marked another arrow on the wall before I continued following the new tunnel. I could hear the voices of several vampaneze arguing about something, I approached with caution not knowing what to expect. When I got to the end of the tunnel I came upon a temporary door. At least that is what it looked like, I kicked it down with a well placed roundhouse kick and it fell down onto the stone floor. I drew my sword and held it up defensively, I had walked into a room (well it was a tunnel that had been altered to look like a room) and it was full of vampaneze. They were sitting around playing cards, drinking and arguing over some nonsense, when they saw me they all leapt to their feet and drew their own weapons on me. They had knives and swords too, I had walked into a deathtrap, there were maybe ten or twelve vampaneze and I was alone. That was when I realised just how big of a mistake I had made by going after the vampaneze on my own.**

 **"What are you doing in our lair?" one vampaneze asked me.**

 **"I got lost." I lied quickly.**

 **"Lost? Where are you trying to get to? All sewers in this city lead to us and our lairs. You're outnumbered and we hate trespassers don't we lads?" the vampaneze sneered and cackled like an evil clown.**

 **"I'm sorry, I was looking for Jared." I said instantly.**

 **"Jared?" the vampaneze said, puzzled.**

 **"Yes, he's been dating my best friend Sarah." I answered.**

 **"Why didn't you say that before? We love Sarah, she's one of us." the vampaneze claimed as he lowered his weapon.**

 **"You scared the life outta me, I couldn't think straight." I admitted.**

 **"I'm sorry, I have to defend my troupe and I didn't know who you were until you mentioned Sarah." the vampaneze explained.**

 **"I'm Anna by the way." I replied.**

 **"I'm Rob and that over there is Steve. He's the deputy troupe leader." Rob replied.**

 **Then the other vampaneze came over to me and introduced themselves, I shook their hands out of politeness but inside I was gearing up to fight them all.**

 **"Wait, hold on just one moment. I can smell vampire blood." Steve called out from across the room.**

 **"That'll be me, I'm a half vampiress like Sarah is, we were both blooded by the same mentor." I admitted.**

 **"At least she's honest, we'll give her that." Steve replied as he drew his sword.**

 **"Kill her Steve, slash her throat open." one vampaneze said, then the vampaneze started cheering and jeering, they were gearing up for combat. I drew my sword and jumped backwards out of range. I was absolutely petrified.**

 **"Why kill me? I'm Sarah's friend and you accept her so why not me?" I asked.**

 **"She's been tested, she's one of us. She survived the Coffin of Fire so we know that she's one of us but you are not." Steve said.**

 **"Sarah has vampire blood in her veins, you can't blood her or you'll both go mad and die. Our blood is toxic to you and your blood is toxic to us." I explained.**

 **"Anyone who survives the Coffin of Fire is destined to be a vampaneze troupe leader, Des Tiny says that Sarah can be blooded by us with no ill effects, she's supposed to be one of us." Steve replied as he and I started to circle one another, this was it. This was my first real test of courage and skills with a sword.**

 **I made a couple of strikes but Steve was too quick for me, he dodged my attacks and then he attacked me, his sword connected with my flesh which left a nasty gash that bled a lot. I cried out in pain but I had to finish what I started. I faught on, I dodged as well as I could and a couple of my lunges hit their mark, Steve was bleeding too but neither of us were done. The fight wouldn't be over until one of us was dead or on the ground dying. The other vampaneze were still jeering and shouting support for their deputy leader Steve, I was on my own in an almost hopeless situation.**

 **I thought I was going to die, I would die a warrior's death but I'd still die nevertheless. I had already made my peace with the Gods of the Vampires long before I entered the sewer tunnels, I knew that I would enter Paradise as a young warrior if I died, that gave me a little bit of comfort. At least I would die on my feet which was a noble way for any vampire to die. I faught on for as long as I could, I was losing blood but my adrenaline kept me going, my sword made its mark on Steve and he too was badly wounded. I thought to myself:** _ **if I died then I'd take my opponent with me too.**_ **I continued to fight and battle with Steve, we were both exhausted and bleeding but neither of us would surrender to the other one, it was not the vampire way and any vampaneze who showed cowardice would be killed by their own troupe members. Both of us had to fight until the death of one of us occured.**

 **I begged the Gods of the Vampires to have mercy on me and to let me die without suffering too much, I couldn't fight any longer. I was exhausted, wounded and weak. I had faught bravely but to no avail, Steve was too strong for me...**

 **I was about to surrender when a thought inside my head told me not to give up because Steve would make a mistake. That thought renewed my sense of determination to win this fight, sure enough Steve had blood on his hand which made his weapon slippery, he dropped his sword, it slipped from his grip and at that precise moment I struck him in the chest with my own weapon. I used all my remaining strength to make that one final strike, Steve collapsed on the ground, he was bleeding out all over the place. The other vampaneze rushed to his side but it was too late, Steve died then and there on the ground in a pool of his own blood.**

 **I had won. I was alive, wounded and bleeding but when I looked at my wound it wasn't as serious as I first thought, it would need stitches but it wasn't fatal.**

 **The vampaneze turned on me, they couldn't believe that I was still alive and standing up.**

 **"Come on then if you think you can do better, I'll kill you all." I said provokingly to the vampaneze who I had spoken to first. The vampaneze just snarled at me like an animal, then he and the others turned tail and ran.** _ **They were afraid of me...**_

 **I exited the tunnels and I came up through a manhole cover, I was back in the city centre. I was still bleeding and I knew I needed medical attention. The hotel was too far to go so I walked around slowly whilst trying to find a hospital or a medical centre. Luckily I found one and it was open, I walked into the A** **&** **E department and spoke to the lady at the reception desk.**

 **"Hi, I need help. I've been stabbed." I said with a sense of urgency in my voice.**

 **"Code yellow, I repeat code yellow. All available doctors report to reception immediately." The receptionist announced via a tannoy system.**

 **"I'm weak, I can't stand up any longer." I murmured as I collapsed to the ground and then everything went black...**

 **When I came around I was on a ward in a bed, I saw that I had a patch over where my wound had been and I had I.V lines in me again just like I had when I had been bitten by Madam Octa. I sat up slowly, I felt weak but no pain came from my wound. I figured that they must have given me some morphine so they could stitch me up and prevent my wound from getting infected.**

 **"Hello, is anybody there?" I called out, my bed was behind curtains. A nurse opened the curtains and came over to me.**

 **"How are you feeling?" the nurse asked me.**

 **"Weak and tired, is my boyfriend here?" I asked.**

 **"No, nobody is here to see you. We need to fill in all of your personal details before we can contact anybody." the nurse said as she took out a form and a pen.**

 **"I need to know your name, date of birth, home address, next of kin details and your medical history." The nurse told me,**

 **"My name is Anna, I was born on the eighteenth of November nineteen eighty nine. I have no home address, I'm staying at the Ridgeway River Hotel with my boyfriend and my now ex best friend. My next of kin is my boyfriend Larten Crepsley, my medical history is pretty good. Generally I am OK but I was bitten by a deadly spider earlier this year, I pulled through but my immune system was weakened by the poison." I explained in detail to the nurse who wrote everything down on her forms.**

 **"I'll contact the hotel and I'll tell them to give a message to your boyfriend. What is your room number?" the nurse asked me.**

 **"I'm in room number two hundred and fourteen on the second floor." I replied.**

 **"Very well, I'll get a message to your boyfriend as soon as I can. I'll tell him what's happened and then I'll let him in to visit you. You must stay here for a week until you're healed." the nurse instructed me and she was right. A stab wound would take a while to heal.**

 **Over the next couple of hours several doctors came to check on me, they made sure that my wound patch was secured in the right place and they checked my vital signs. I asked for food and drink so they sent my order down to the kitchens, sitting up in bed was painful because of where my wound was but I couldn't eat or drink whilst laying down so I had to put up with it.**

 **I had just finished my dinner of roast beef and all the trimmings when the nurse who I had spoken to previously came to see me.**

 **"I have contacted the hotel, they sent a message up to your room. Apparently when your boyfriend heard what had happened he left immediately and he's on his way here. When he arrives I'll let you know." the nurse told me.**

 **"Thank you, the dinner was lovely by the way." I replied as I gave her my tray with my clean plate on it. I finished my drink and then I picked up the book which the nurse had brought for me to read. It was an English classic novel, I remembered reading it at school in my English lessons. It wasn't a bad story either. I was just getting to the part where the eldest daughter turns down a proposal of marriage when I heard Larten's voice, at least I think I heard his voice anyway. A few moments later the nurse came back with Larten walking right behind her, he had changed into a shirt and jeans rather than wearing his red suit and cloak. I think he was trying to look human but I didn't care, I just wanted to see him.**

 **"Anna darling, are you OK?" Larten asked me as soon as he saw me.**

 **"I'm recovering, the stab wound was deep and I lost quite a bit of blood so they had to give me a transfusion." I explained.**

 **"Who attacked you?" Larten asked me seriously.**

 **"It was one-on-one combat with one of the you know whats, I killed him and the rest ran like the cowards they are." I whispered quietly in Larten's ear.**

 **"Those evil bastards, I will make them pay for this." Larten whispered back to me, although he whispered he was furious.**

 **"I would expect nothing less from you, you vowed to protect me after all." I reminded Larten.**

 **"I did say that and I will protect you. I will not leave your side now until you are fully healed." Larten confirmed.**

 **"What about sarah?" I asked.**

 **"She can rot as far as I am concerned, if what those scum said about her is true then I will kill her myself as a traitor." Larten replied confidently.**

 **"All I need to do now is rest and heal up. I have to stay here for a week according to the nurse." I explained.**

 **"You have accelerated healing powers, you should heal much quicker than a human." Larten told me.**

 **"Is that a vampire thing?" I whispered.**

 **"Yes, it is. We age much slower and we heal much faster than humans do." Larten whispered back so that the nurse wouldn't hear what we were saying, it would freak her out.**

 **"The human blood that they transfused into you will have been assimilated by the vampire blood in your veins, you are still a half vampire and that will never be reversed." Larten explained to me.**

 **"I'm not sure I understand." I replied, confused.**

 **"Blood has cells in it yes?" Larten asked me.**

 **"Yes it does." I answered immediately.**

 **"When vampire blood mixes with human blood the vampire blood cells murge with the human blood cells. The human blood cells turn into vampire blood cells, if you are only a half vampire then there is not enough vampire blood to change all of your cells at once. This is because the human body makes new cells constantly and there is not enough vampire blood in your veins to change them all. Does that make sense to you?" Larten asked me.**

 **"Now it does yes, science was never my strong point but I understand what you've just told me." I replied.**

 **"Good, I am pleased that I was able to explain it to you in a way that you understand." Larten commented quietly before he kissed me tenderly. I had missed Larten's kisses as much as I had missed him.**

 **"If only I could hold you in my arms I would do so." Larten commented.**

 **"It's OK, as long as you're here that's the only thing that matters to me." I declared before Larten kissed me again and pulled his chair as close to the bed as he could. He held my hand and we talked softly to one another about all kinds of things. When we were alone together like this we were just like any other regular couple, it was only when we were in the privacy of our hotel room or trailers that our vampirism came out.**

 **Larten was as good as his word and he stayed with me throughout the night, I slept and he stayed awake. We were both nocturnal but it is hard to sleep during the day in a hospital so I had to alter my sleeping patterns.**

 **"Your boyfriend is very attentive." one of the doctors said to me when she came to check my patch and see if the dressing over the stitches needed changing.**

 **"I know, he's very loyal and loving." I concurred with the doctor.**

 **"You are healing remarkably well considering how bad your wound was." the doctor told me.**

 **"That's good, I need to eat though." I commented.**

 **"I'll get one of the nurses to bring you today's menu, your boyfriend can go to our visitor's restaurant if he wishes." the doctor replied as she filled in my charts.**

 **"He won't leave my side, he hates being away from me when I'm ill or injured." I explained calmly.**

 **"Aww, that's sweet of him, anyway I have other patients to visit so I'll leave you to rest. The nurse will be along with the menu shortly." the doctor said as she left my bedside.**

 **Larten woke up shortly after the doctor had left, he found it hard to stay awake in the daytime.**

 **"What time is it?" Larten asked.**

 **"It is about five in the evening I think, they're serving dinner in the restaurant and in here too. The nurse will be here with the menu soon so I can choose what I want." I disclosed.**

 **"I should go and eat, I have not eaten since yesterday." Larten commented.**

 **"The restaurant is open, you can eat there." I said.**

 **"No, I meant that I have not eaten." Larten commented quietly.**

 **"Oh, I haven't either actually." I said as I understood what Larten meant.**

 **"Shall I bring you something back?" Larten asked.**

 **"Yes, I'd like that. Don't be long though, I hate being away from you." I proclaimed.**

 **"Likewise I do not wish to be away from you either." Larten responded as he kissed me and vanished in a blur.**

 **I ate my meal alone, I had curry tonight as I hadn't had one in ages. I enjoyed it too, it wasn't too spicy but it was tasty.**

 **When Larten returned to the hospital he gave me a small flask that felt warm when I held it.**

 **"Drink this, it will make you feel better." Larten said.**

 **"What is it?" I asked cautiously.**

 **"You know what it is, smell it." Larten answered.**

 **"Oh yes, I know what this is now that I have smelt it." I replied as I drunk the contents of the flask without any hesitation. I felt better after drinking Larten's gift, I needed to feed and Larten enabled me to do that. After I had finished drinking the contents of the flask Larten kissed me, it was a deep kiss. This was Larten's way of controlling his lust for me and I loved it when he kissed me deeply. It felt so good to have his lips on mine again, I couldn't wait to get out of the hospital and back to our hotel room bed. Whilst we were there we could make love from dawn until sunset if we chose to.**

 **After I had my stitches removed the doctor went to check my wound except there was no wound, I only had a scar and marks from where the stitches had been. The doctor couldn't understand how I had healed so quickly; he put it down to me being young and healthy.**

 **"Look at my scar, it is hideous, I am no longer perfect." I complained.**

 **"I have many scars, do you think that they are hideous too?" Larten asked me, he sounded hurt.**

 **"No, but you're a guy, you've been to war so naturally you'll have scarrring from old battle wounds. On the other hand I have only been in one fight and it nearly killed me." I answered.**

 **"You survived the fight and you have healed up with nothing more than a scar. It is not like your wound got infected and gave you gangrene, that would have killed you." Larten declared in his usual monotone voice.**

 **"I still don't know how I survived, if Steve hadn't have dropped his weapon he would have killed me, the blood made his weapon slippery." I replied.**

 **"Maybe it was destiny." Larten said with a smirk.**

 **"Or maybe the luck of the vampires was with me, that is far more likely." I concluded.**

 **"Yes, that is more likely. Did you make your peace with the Gods of the Vampires?" Larten asked me, he sounded serious.**

 **"Of course I did, I asked them for a warriors death and for it to be quick. As it turned out I was the one left standing on my feet looking down at my victim." I answered happily.**

 **"You have made your first kill, there will be many more to make I assure you. You have shown those scum that you are a force to be reckoned with, they will not be so willing to challenge you in the future." Larten confirmed.**

 **"I hope that I won't have to fight for a long time, I didn't enjoy it at all. I was so scared, the only thing that kept me going was my adrenaline." I admitted.**

 **"That is the same for all of us, even I have been scared at the prospect of fighting a formidable force. I have made many kills but none of them were in cold blood, I kill only when I have to." Larten said reassuringly.**

 **"I knew that you were a killer but you are not evil, everybody kills when they are in battle. They either kill or they are themselves killed, it is called survival." I acknowledged.**

 **"Yes, that is correct." Larten agreed.**

 **"I can't wait to get out of here." I said, I was bored.**

 **"When you are able to leave this establishment we shall return to the Cirque Du Freak." Larten said decisively.**

 **"Good, what about Sarah?" I asked.**

 **"I told you before she can rot as far as I am concerned, I will kill her myself if our paths cross in the future. She is a traitor and you were correct in your assessment of her character." Larten reiterated.**

 **"I was shocked, I mean she saved my life but now she has joined our mortal enemy. I think that Darren had this issue didn't he? It seems like history is repeating itself." I revealed.**

 **"I think that you killed the ex best friend of Darren. His name was Steve Leopard I believe but I am not sure. I think that he was meant to be the Lord of the Vampaneze but now he is a corpse." Larten confirmed.**

 **"I am sure that the vampaneze will return with a new leader, one of the vampaneze told me that Sarah will be their leader. Someday I think that we shall meet on the battlefield, one of us will triumph and the other will die." I concluded.**

 **"This sounds like the work of Des Tiny to me, he truly is evil and if anybody needs to die he does." Larten declared.**

 **"Who is Des Tiny?" I asked.**

 **"He is this evil time travelling sorceror, he meddles with the very fabric of existance. He is the boss of the Little People who work at the Cirque Du Freak. He creates them from the souls of the dead or something, it is beyond bizarre. He also admits to being a cannibal and he drinks the blood of babies." Larten explained.**

 **"Eugh, yuk. He sounds like a nasty piece of work." I affirmed.**

 **"He is a nasty piece of work. Des Tiny has a daughter named Evanna and she wears clothing made from ropes. She is a powerful witch and she is the only one who can carry the child of a vampire, vampires cannot have children." Larten conceded.**

 **"I wondered why I am not pregnant. I thought that I would have been pregnant for sure after all the unprotected sex that we've been having. I'm glad I'm not pregnant though, that'd be a nightmare." I said decisively.**

 **"I am sorry, I believed that I explained everything to you before I blooded you. I was wrong." Larten replied.**

 **"You never told me that vampires cannot have children. Personally I've never wanted to have a child so it doesn't bother me at all that we are barren." I revealed.**

 **"This is the reason why we blood humans. We cannot increase our clan numbers by procreation so we have to use assimilation, it is the only way." Larten declared.**

 **"That makes sense, if a species cannot breed then it must increase its numbers in another way." I responded.**

 **"I do not like children anyway, they are noisy and messy. I much prefer the company of sophisticated adult clan members." Larten admitted.**

 **"I agree, I never have been keen on having kids. It is the idea of giving birth that has put me off. I don't wish to put my body through that trauma and now I won't have to." I explained.**

 **"That is reasonable. As a man I cannot imagine what a woman goes through when she gives birth, it can be very dangerous and many women used to die from infections that they caught after they gave birth. A lot of women have died during labour too, they either had complications or they were sick and they died from exhaustion. " Larten told me.**

 **"That was before clean hospitals and modern medicines were issued." I replied.**

 **"I agree, treatments in the ancient times were primitive and often barbaric. Many of the treatments available caused death to the patient but they had no other remedies." Larten said as if he were teaching a class full of idiots.**

 **"I am grateful that I live in the twenty first century with all modern conveniences. I would not have survived this attack if not for the medical staff and their expertise." I answered.**

 **"I know a bit about botanics and herbal remedies, I can heal a wound using herbs. We have limited modern medical supplies at the mountain so we use what nature has provided us with." Larten explained.**

 **"That makes sense, herbs are better for the body than artificial factory made medications anyway." I concurred.**

 **"I agree. Being a vampire is a hard life to live, we have some perks I admit but our thirst for blood, our inability to enjoy the sunshine, the fact that we cannot have children and the fact that we live for centuries longer than we should makes the life of a vampire not very appealing to some. For those of us who are already vampires we make the most of it and for those who wish to become vampires we do not recommend it. We only blood those who have nowhere else to turn or those who strike a deal with one of us. It is not all that bad is it? You have my love and my protection, I have shown you a whole new world and introduced you to things that as a human you probably never would have experienced." Larten concluded.**

 **"No, being a vampire isn't so bad, I quite like it actually. My favourite thing is diving into the sea. I hold my breath and swim underwater so that I can see all the fish. I stay underwater for far longer than a human would be able to. I also love it when you flit with me on your back and I can feel the wind blowing through my hair." I said happily.**

 **We spent a long time talking to each other, I loved getting to know Larten and as he had lived for so long he was very knowledgable when it came to history. He had met a few historical figures too such as Charles Dickens and Charlie Chaplin. To me they were historical figures but they had lived and died during Larten's lifetime.**

 **"Exactly how old are you?" I asked out of pure curiosity.**

 **"I am almost two hundred in human years but I have the body of a forty year old. I have probably met people that you learnt about in your school classroom." Larten asserted.**

 **"That is probably true, history was my favourite subject at school. Who is the most interesting person that you've met?" I asked.**

 **"I have met Queen Victoria and I have also had dinner with Marie Curie. They were lovely ladies. I met Winston Churchill when I was walking through London one evening." Larten expanded as he thought of his own long history.**

 **"You have led an interesting life, I am sure that Seba Nile will have a few stories to tell me when I meet him." I said with a smirk. I was thinking about the potential for embarrasment if Seba did in fact tell me a few stories of Larten's escapades.**

 **"If you want to know some tales of my youth then I shall tell you them, did I tell you that I found Gavnur as a baby? I named him, saved him and raised him. He is like a brother to me and as such he and I have had many adventures." Larten admitted as he went ever so slightly pink at the thought of those adventures.**

 **"Tell me about something funny that happened to you." I pleaded.**

 **"OK I shall tell you one tale of my youth but it goes no further. If you tell anybody else about it I will not be pleased." Larten said sternly.**

 **"OK, I won't tell anybody. What happened?" I asked, I was intrigued now.**

 **"One evening Gavnur, myself and a couple of other Generals went to a tavern. We got very, very drunk and let me tell you that it takes a lot of alcohol to get a vampire drunk. As it happened in my youth I dabbled with slight of hand illusions and I earnt the name Quicksilver because of this fact. Gavnur decided that he wanted some decent wine and I in my drunken state said to him that Seba kept some good wine in his quarters. I offered to take a bottle or two and share it with Gavnur. When we returned to the mountain drunk and loudly proclaiming our love for the tavern I staggered along the corridor, I was looking for the quarters that Seba slept in. Being drunk I went the wrong way and I ended up in the quarters of another vampire, instead of taking wine from Seba I ended up taking some bottles of whiskey. The whiskey bottle looked very similar to a wine bottle and I could not read the faded label. I took what I thought was wine back to Gavnur, we opened the bottles and downed them quickly before we realised what we had drunk. It set our mouths on fire as it was so strong and we threw up all over the floor. As if that was not bad enough the whiskey I had taken belonged to Prince Arrow, he had been saving it and when he found out what had happened he was absolutely furious. Seba got a dressing down for having an out of control drunkard for an assistant, I got both barrels from the Princes and from Seba, Gavnur also got a stern warning from the Princes. He is never to get that drunk again or he must face the consequences of his actions. From that night to this I have never drunk that quantity of alcohol again because I have learnt my lesson." Larten concluded, he was red faced and he looked rather ashamed of himself.**

 **"Larten Crepsley you are such a rebel, you should be ashamed of yourself." I added for good measure then I giggled because I found the whole story hilarious.**

 **"Yes well that was a long time ago, I am not that rebel any longer. I am a much wiser man now than I was." Larten replied, he was still blushing and his throat was red.**

 **"Aww, you've gone all red." I smirked innocently.**

 **"It is hot in here, they must have bad circulation through the air vents." Larten said as he tried to excuse his embarrasment.**

 **"I liked that tale, please tell me another one." I begged.**

 **"Maybe I should not tell you any more tales of my wild youth, I look back on them with shame. I should not have done those things but I have learnt from my mistakes." Larten conceded.**

 **"Oh go on, that one was so funny. I won't say anything to anybody." I promised persuasively.**

 **"Later on I shall tell you another story, right now I need to cool down." Larten replied before he did his usual vanishing in a blur trick.**

 **I lay down in my bed and tried to sleep, the doctor had told me that I was to be released from the hospital the next day because I had healed up so well. They needed the bed space, the hospital had a shortage of beds and plenty of people were waiting for them as they were sick or injured. They required hospital treatment but until there was a free space on the ward the doctors couldn't do much for them.**

 **I was happy that I only had one more night in hospital, I couldn't wait to return to the Cirque Du Freak. I had missed Evra and my other friends that I had made whilst I was there too. I would not have been so keen to return to the Cirque Du Freak if I had known at that point what was going to take place there...**


	12. Chapter 11

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 11:**

 **I packed my suitcase quickly when I returned to the hotel, I couldn't wait to get back to the Cirque Du Freak. I had missed everybody so much and laying in a hospital bed had made me stiff. I needed to stretch my legs and return to normal. I noticed that somebody else was in the room that Sarah had been in so she must have moved on, I didn't care if she was dead in a ditch after what she had done to us both.**

 **I went for a jog around the city to get the stiffness out of my bones, every so often I would stop and do some stretches. It was really important to keep myself fit and healthy. I jogged around the city limits twice and then I jogged back to the hotel, the vampire blood in my veins had given me a lot of stamina. I could run a marathon without thinking twice about it if I chose to.**

 **I picked up my suitcase, paid my half of our hotel bill and then I waited for Larten to come and pay his half. He had the key to the room too which he had to return to the reception desk.**

 **"How much do I need to pay you?" Larten asked directly to the receptionist.**

 **"Your girlfriend has paid half of the balance, the remaining balance is one hundred and forty nine pounds and sixty pence." the receptionist answered after she looked it up on her computer.**

 **"Take this money and you may keep the change." Larten said as he handed over a large bunch of twenty pound notes to the receptionist.**

 **"Thank you, we hope that you'll stay with us again someday." the receptionist said as she split the money between what had to go in the till for the bill and what could go in the tip jar.**

 **We walked out of the hotel and back to the train station, we caught the first train that was going to the nearest town where the Cirque Du Freak would be playing. We could walk the rest of the way, it wasn't a long walk from the train station in the town that we were going to. The field where the Cirque Du Freak had pitched up its tents and parked its vans was about twenty minutes away from the train station when travelling on foot but with our speed we reached it much quicker than that.**

 **I put my suitcase in my trailer and I went to find Mr Tall, I had to explain to him about what Sarah had done and why she wouldn't be returning to the Cirque. I wouldn't miss her, she never really did much work and she left me to do all of the stuff that she couldn't be bothered to do. She expected everything to be done for her like she was some kind of princess with servants. I hated her attitude and if she was happy living in sewer tunnels with the vampaneze then I wasn't going to stop her from living there. Personally I preferred my trailer and a warm bed to a cold tunnel that was overrun with rats and spiders.**

 **I was soon back into my old routine. I had to run a fair few errands for the Cirque Du Freak performers but I didn't mind doing that. One of the main reasons why I was asked to run so many errands was because I could move much faster than the Cirque Du Freak performers, what took me a couple of minutes to complete would take the average performer fifteen to twenty minutes. Hans Hands was very fast but as he used his hands to walk on he couldn't carry things and walk at the same time. I had a list of jobs to do that were as long as my arm on some evenings but I didn't mind helping out. I got paid well, fed well and housed well so what more could I ask for?**

 **I had been travelling with the Cirque Du Freak for six months. Larten and I were getting along really well, our relationship was strong and we loved each other very much. All of the Cirque Du Freak performers were happy for us, some were surprised when they found out but that was to be expected. Most of the Cirque performers and staff believed that there was something between us because of how we acted around each other, we'd be sitting together by the campfire but I'd have my head resting on Larten's shoulder for example, sometimes the performers saw how we looked at one another and when Larten finished his act on the stage I was always the first person he'd chat to afterwards. I was even asked to go onto the stage, I had to let Madam Octa spin a web over my mouth. It had been scary but interesting and the audience members gasped when they saw Madam Octa on my lips, she was rather large after all. I trusted Larten not to let anything bad happen to me on that stage, one slip would be all it took to break the connection between Larten, the flute and the spider but Larten never faltered.**

 **When we took our bows at the end of the act Larten made me come to the front of the stage and stand next to him, he wanted the audience to see me in my costume. The Cirque Du Freak staff had put a lot of effort into my costume and I loved it, it was red like Larten's outfit.**

 **I wore a dress with gold detail on it, it was made from velvet and it opened out at the bottom like a ball gown except it wasn't floor length, it came just past my knees. I wore black lace-up boots with it and some matching jewels that Larten had bought for me.**

 **I was relaxing in the big top after I had left the stage, I had a drink in one hand and I was sitting in a fold-up chair, it was like one of those ones you take on camping trips. I was waiting for Larten to come and see me, we liked to sit together and chat about our evenings and whether we had anything important to discuss with each other.**

 **I was tired but I was alert to potential dangers, anything could happen at any time and I had been taught to prepare for it. I heard an unusual noise coming from the Wolf Man's cage, at first I thought that he just needed feeding and he was grouchy because he hadn't eaten recently, then I heard a much louder growl coming from the direction of the Wolf Man's cage and that wasn't normal.**

 **Just then Larten arrived and I was glad to see him.**

 **"What's up with the Wolf Man tonight?" I asked, I was worried.**

 **"I am not sure, I have not been anywhere near his cage." Larten replied.**

 **"He is growling a lot more than usual." I answered.**

 **"Yes he is, I can hear him. Has he been fed?" Larten enquired.**

 **"I don't know to be honest, it wasn't on my duty list to do tonight." I explained.**

 **"I shall go and look, I would like to know that everything is in order." Larten acknowledged before he vanished in a blur just like he always had done.**

 **I stayed in my seat and drunk the rest of my hot chocolate. I wasn't that worried because Larten was strong and he could handle himself, he was a superior warrior and he had taken many lives but all were necessary kills.**

 **I could hear growling and then I saw some of the Cirque Du Freak performers running in fear and screaming. I leapt up, drew my sword and went to find out what was going on. I soon found out what had happened and every Cirque Du Freak performer was in danger, a large band of vampaneze had turned up to cause trouble and I suspected that they were here for Larten and myself. Then I realised that the Wolf Man had been released from his cage, one of the vampaneze had snapped the chains which secured his cage and the door had swung open. The Wolf Man had jumped out of the cage and he was now snarling, growling and chasing some of the performers who had run to their trailers.**

 **I couldn't see Larten anywhere but the Wolf Man came bounding out of nowhere, one minute he was chasing Truska and the next minute he was snarling at me, I was cornered and backed up against a chain link fence. I held my sword out defensively in front of me, when the Wolf Man moved I struck out at him. I didn't wish to kill him but this was a life or death situation and I feared that I'd have no other option. It was either him or me!**

 **The vampaneze were making the whole situation worse, they had weapons and they were banging on the doors of trailers, setting stuff on fire and picking fights with anyone and everyone that they could. This was not normal behaviour for vampaneze but with their former leader dead and a rebellious, trecherous half vampire leading them they were out of control and deadly. Mr Tall was nowhere to be found, he was the only one who could restore order. I had no time to worry about the vampaneze now because I had to deal with the immediate threat of the Wolf Man.**

 **So here I was sword drawn, pinned up against the chain link fence by the Wolf Man and a wall, I had next to no room to move. I was truly cornered and I had no clue what to do other than strike the Wolf Man with my sword. His hair was tough and my short sword barely reached him, my only option was to let him come close to me and then strike when he had advanced near enough. It was a very risky strategy but if it worked then I'd be free, if it failed then I'd die. It was that simple.**

 **I was about to lower my weapon to let the Wolf Man close to me when he suddenly whipped around and turned away from me! I moved away from the fence and the wall instantly, I was no longer trapped but as soon as I moved the Wolf Man moved. He remained facing away from me on all fours and then I realised what he had been doing, he wasn't trying to attack me, he was trying to protect me from the vampaneze who had almost surrounded us within seconds. They could move incredibly fast too. The Wolf Man snarled visciously at the vampaneze, I think he knew good from evil if nothing else. I was the one who had been feeding him and bathing him recently and unlike most of the other staff I showed no fear towards him. I even gave him extra meat chunks when nobody else was looking, I knew he'd never be tame of course but I still respected him as a living being. The vampaneze tightened their ring around both of us, they had weapons too and they were not afraid to use them.**

 **I stood next to the Wolf Man, he was really riled up and dangerous. Whenever a vampaneze came closer he lunged at them and they quickly backed up, this went on for a while because they weren't sure how to deal with the deadly creature that was the Wolf Man. I faught a couple of them off myself, I stabbed one and I slashed the other one's face open. Blood was dripping from my sword and the Wolf Man could smell it, he knew it would be deadly to him if he drank it. The Wolf Man lunged again and this time he connected with one of the vampaneze, he tossed him around like a ragdoll and ripped his stomach open with one bite. He lay on the ground bleeding out, his guts were a tangled, bloody mess. This kill made the vampaneze even more determined, the Wolf Man wasn't about to quit defending me though. He stayed right by my side. I challanged another vampaneze to single combat and we faught, he cut my arm open but it was a minor flesh wound. I drew him in close, like an idiot he came closer to me and in doing so I used my own superior speed to slice his throat open. I cut his jugular vein and he too bled out within seconds. The Wolf Man lunged again and tore another vampaneze to shreds, his screams of pain will stay in my mind for a very long time to come. That made three down and four left to fight. I started to fight with another, much larger vampaneze and his skin was very dark purple so he must have been rather old. He had this ghastly yellow suit on that clashed hidiously with his purple skin but he didn't seem to care. We faught each other, he was much taller than me and he had a long sword, I blocked as many blows as I could and I returned them.**

 **"You are scum!" I declared loudly.**

 **"You will regret that, I'll kill you where you st-" but the vampaneze never finished his sentence because there was a knife in his back. I looked up to see none other than Gavnur Purl and Larten standing opposite me. They had their weapons drawn and they engaged the remaining vampaneze, between the three of us and the Wolf Man they didn't last long. One flit, the other one had Gavnur's long hunting knife stuck into his side and the last one had his throat cut then his belly was ripped open by the Wolf Man just like he had done to the other vampaneze.**

 **"That was not nice." I said as I wiped the blood from my sword and put it back into its scabbard.**

 **"I've faught worse than that, that was just a minor challenge." Gavnur added as he retrieved his throwing knife from the back of the dead vampaneze.**

 **"Anna are you OK? I am sorry that I did not come to your aid sooner. I was fighting the others." Larten said.**

 **"My arm has been sliced open but it is a minor injury." I replied as I held up my arm and winced in pain.**

 **"That is deeper than it looks, come with me." Larten instructed so I followed him whilst Gavnur was left to escort the Wolf Man back to his cage and help clean up the corpses.**

 **I followed Larten to his trailer where he pulled out a small wooden box from inside his cloak. He opened it the box, it was full of bottles and different plants.**

 **"I am going to clean this up and put a paste on it, the paste will prevent infection and help to heal you quicker." Larten told me as he began to make the paste by grinding up flower petals and other roots with a drop of water.**

 **"It hurts." I complained, there was no morphine for me this time.**

 **"It will do but the paste will help. I have to clean it first." Larten said as he got some warm water and a cloth. He began to dab the wound very gently, it was still bleeding so Larten wiped away the blood and then he had to apply some pressure to the wound to stop it from bleeding.**

 **"Can your spit not heal it?" I asked.**

 **"It can only heal a little bit, it does not have the power to heal a large wound like this but I shall apply some to heal the most minor bit of the wound." Larten explained.**

 **Larten worked up some spit in his mouth and then he spat it directly onto the wound itself, he spread it out with a finger and the pain dulled. The wound was still there but it wasn't as bad as it had been. Larten finished mixing up the paste, he spread a thin layer of it over my wound before he wrapped a sterile bandage around my arm and tied it in place. The Cirque Du Freak did have first aid kits so every trailer had one in it along with a fire extinguisher.**

 **"How is it now?" Larten asked me as he put his supplies away.**

 **"It feels better, the pain is not as bad as it was but it isn't a nice thing to experience. I didn't want my arm to be sliced open." I answered.**

 **"I know that darling but I have fixed it. With your accelerated healing it should be healed within a couple of days, maybe it will take three or four days at the most." Larten confirmed.**

 **"I was so scared Larten, I thought the Wolf Man was going to kill me where I stood. When I was pinned against the chain link fence I was sure that I was about to die." I admitted.**

 **"I slaughtered four vampaneze before Gavnur and I reached you, it is lucky that Gavnur was here or things may not have turned out in our favour." Larten concluded.**

 **"I must thank him, he saved my life when he threw that knife." I acknowledged.**

 **"The Wolf Man protected you too, you must also thank him in some way." Larten instructed.**

 **"I thought he was deadly, he is deadly but why would he guard me?" I asked.**

 **"Maybe he knows that the vampaneze are more of a threat to him than you are, they provoked him but you did not." Larten commented.**

 **"I struck at him with my sword, I could have killed him but he turned away from me at the last second. That is when I saw those scum advancing on me and him." I explained.**

 **"I do not know what the vampaneze are trying to achieve. They break into our camp, set fire to things, scare the performers half to death and then decide to take you and the Wolf Man on. They were not likely to succeed against you and him combined but yet they still tried to fight you. They are all mad." Larten said decisively.**

 **"Where is Mr Tall?" I enquired.**

 **"He is away on business, he has gone to collect a new performer and bring them here to the Cirque Du Freak. I have no further details on the matter." Larten told me.**

 **"OK, we had better get the campsite cleaned up, the bodies burnt and the repairs done before he comes back." I replied.**

 **"I agree, I think that Gavnur has dealt with the bodies. The wolf cage where the Wolf Man lives needs to be repaired which I can do, I know how to fix chains and you can help with replacing everything that has been burnt. The Cirque Du Freak members will help out. The main thing is getting the big top replaced, the whole thing went up in flames and most of the equipment was in there at the time. I cannot say how much equipment has been saved from the flames." Larten answered.**

 **"That means the chairs, the tables, the stage decorations, the costumes and the props will all need to be replaced. The costumes will take forever, there are so many of them." I said sadly as I thought about everything we'd lost.**

 **"The vampaneze will pay for what they have done, they all need to be taught a fearful bloody lesson in respect." Larten declared openly.**

 **"I agree with you, they need to be wiped out." I concurred.**

 **"The Clan will step in, the truce has been broken and that means war." Larten confirmed as he put his weapons away.**

 **"Doesn't that mean more fighting?" I asked nervously.**

 **"Yes, I am afraid it does mean more fighting. Do not worry about it, it has not yet come to pass. Perhaps the Princes will be able to negotiate a new peace treaty or find a diplomatic solution to this mess." Larten told me, he sounded a bit apprehensive about the whole situation.**

 **"I will just live as I have been living and then I shall do my part to defend our clan when it is necessary to do so." I replied calmly. My arm was still hurting me, it wasn't so much painful but more like a throbbing sensation, it wasn't very pleasant.**

 **"I'm going to bed, I am shattered after that skirmish. The sun is rising isn't it?" I asked Larten.**

 **"Yes, it is rising. That means that we should both go to bed and rest. Your arm will heal whilst you are sleeping." Larten responded as we both got undressed and lay down in together in our shared coffin. I didn't mind coffins but I liked the lid to be open, Larten preferred it to be closed so we compremised. When he slept in my trailer the lid was open and when I slept in his trailer the lid was closed. I always bumped my head when the lid was closed and I found it harder to breathe as the air supply was limited. When I told Larten this he agreed to keep the lid open when we slept, I had tried to sleep with the lid closed but it was impossible. As we were getting comfortable I snuggled myself into Larten as closely as I could, he put his arms around me and he kissed me. I had to lie on my opposite side so that I didn't put any weight on the wound that was on my arm.**

 **I woke up at about eight pm, I got up and I got dressed. Larten did the same thing, we had a good routine and that made it easy to sort out our schedule. I went to where the other performers were sitting, a pot was bubbling over the fire.**

 **"What is that?" I asked pointing at the pot.**

 **"It is porridge but it isn't ready yet. We lost a lot of our supplies in the fire so we have to make do with this until Mr Tall is back." Evra said, he preferred a meatier breakfast.**

 **"I don't mind porridge. I prefer rabbit stew though." I replied.**

 **"We all prefer meaty stews but at least we have something to eat rather than nothing at all." Hans Hands added.**

 **"That is true, we must be thankful for what we have instead of moaning about what we don't have." Gertha Teeth concluded.**

 **"It is ready now, do you want some honey and berries or do you prefer your porridge plain?" Evra asked me.**

 **"I will have some honey on mine but no berries for me thanks." I answered.**

 **"Mr Crepsley how do you like your porridge?" Evra asked Larten.**

 **"I will have mine however it comes, I am not bothered because food is food. I shall feed later on anyway and then I will hunt for all of you too." Larten answered as he was handed his bowl of porridge, it tasted good actually. I hadn't eaten porridge in a long time but I enjoyed it. The honey made it sweet and it was made with milk so it was creamy. We all sat around the fire eating our porridge, for many of the performers this was their supper as they weren't nocturnal but for Larten and I it was our breakfast.**

 **When most of the performers had gone to bed and Larten had gone out hunting for us I went to see if anything needed doing around the camp. The Little People and I worked at nighttime and as I was only a half vampire I often worked in the daytime too. I went to see the Wolf Man, he was locked inside his cage. He saw me and he came up to the bars of his cage, I opened the slot at the bottom and I put some meat into his bowl which he ate straight away. He looked at me and I looked at him. I fetched the brush and the bucket of warm, soapy water that was waiting for me and I cautiously unlocked the Wolf Man's cage door. He stepped out of it and I gave him some more meat. I then slowly began to brush him and wash him with a sponge as he chewed on his steak that I had just given him, as long as he had meat he was fine. It served as a distraction and he didn't really mind being washed and brushed either as he was used to it. I was always very gentle with him, some of the others were rough with him and he didn't like that. He snarled at them but with me he seemed to be calmer and quieter. I gave him yet more meat when I started to clip off some of his hairs, it was now January and it was cold and snowing so I didn't cut off too much hair. I just took enough to sell, we sold clippings if his hair as a souvineer. I was even brave enough to stroke the Wolf Man, I had to dry him off with a towel after I had washed him. When he was dry I stroked him very gently on his long, hairy arm. He looked directly at me but he did not growl at all, he was too focused on the bucket of meat that I had for him. He ate loads of meat and bones. I placed the bucket of meat inside the cage and he went back inside it to eat, I closed the door behind him and I locked it. Normally he wouldn't get this much meat but as he had protected me I gave him an extra bucketful as a reward. When the Wolf Man had finished eating he sat down like a dog and he just looked at me, if anybody else had been there he would have been snarling and growling at them but with me he didn't utter a sound.**

 **"I don't know if you understand me but thank you for protecting me, you saved my life." I said to the Wolf Man. He looked at me blankly for a moment and then he came over to the bars of his cage, stuck his arm through the bars and held it there. I reached out to him and handed him another steak which he ate, then he reached out to me again. This time I touched his arm and then I plucked up the courage and I took his paw, he had claws like a wolf. He didn't growl or anything, it was like we understood each other. I think he knew that I wasn't going to hurt him and that he got extra meat from me. I gave him one last big chunk of meat with the bone in it and then I left him to eat it in peace. The performers couldn't eat the Wolf Man's meat because it wasn't fit for human consumption. It didn't do him any harm though as he had a strong constitution.**

 **"Anna, have you got anything to do?" Evra asked me.**

 **"No, I've just washed and fed the Wolf Man. I was going to ask if anybody needs any help but with my arm some things are a bit tricky to do." I said.**

 **"If you like you can help me sponge bath my snake, she's shedding at the moment." Evra suggested.**

 **"Oh sure, I'll help you do that." I replied and we headed to Evra's tent where the snake was coiled up in Evra's own hammock.**

 **"I have everything ready to go, if you hold her then I'll sponge her down. The water helps to loosen the skin so that she can shed it easier." Evra explained in detail.**

 **"I understand." I replied as Evra very carefully picked up his snake and draped her around my shoulders. He then sponge bathed her from her head to her tail, some of her loose skin came off as he was bathing her but that was meant to happen. Evra told me to kiss her nose so I did, she felt soft but slightly cool and I could feel every one of her scales.**

 **"I thought she'd be in hibernation by now." I said.**

 **"She was but she woke up early because I have a heat lamp for her. If she wasn't being kept warm then she'd sleep all through the Winter." Evra said.**

 **"That makes sense, I really love snakes." I acknowledged.**

 **"Do you love me?" Evra asked me. I was very surprised by his question.**

 **"Evra you are unique and you are like a brother to me. I love you as if you were my own flesh and blood but I do not love you in a romantic way." I explained clearly.**

 **"I love you like a sister so it is good that you think of me as your brother." Evra said happily.**

 **"How could I think of you as anything less than my brother? You have always been there for me." I replied with a smile.**

 **"I know that you're Mr Crepsley's mate and nobody wishes to get on the wrong side of him, besides you two make such a lovely couple." Evra confirmed.**

 **"I love him deeply, he means everything to me." I admitted.**

 **"I can tell, I look in your eyes and all I can see is love and when I look at Mr Crepsley and you together you just fit like two puzzle pieces." Evra acknowledged.**

 **"He is such a kind and loving person. He has saved my life more than once too." I concluded.**

 **"It is clear to me that he loves you, I can tell." Evra answered.**

 **"Anna, are you in here?" a familiar voice called from outside Evra's tent.**

 **"Yes I'm in here helping Evra to wash his snake." I replied.**

 **"May I come in?" Larten asked Evra.**

 **"Of course, we were just talking about you." Evra said cheekily.**

 **"I heard you mention my name." Larten acknowledged.**

 **"I was just saying to Anna that you two belong together." Evra admitted.**

 **"I heard every word you said, I have been outside your tent for a while Evra Von." Larten replied stiffly.**

 **"Oh, I hope I haven't offended you." Evra replied quickly.**

 **"No you have not offended me, I agree that Anna and I make a good match and that is why we are together." Larten answered.**

 **"Are you here for any reason?" Evra asked Larten.**

 **"I am here for no reason that concerns you." Larten snapped at Evra.**

 **"I'm sorry, I just thought that you needed me to help you with something. That is why I asked." Evra replied.**

 **"I am here because Anna is here, I do not need to explain myself to you Evra." Larten replied, he sounded annoyed.**

 **"We are finished sponge bathing my snake now so Anna is free to go with you if that is what you desire." Evra commented, he had always been a little bit afraid of Larten.**

 **"Bye Evra, I'll see you tomorrow. I have loads of stuff to do tomorrow as I am on daytime duties." I said as I left Evra's tent with Larten.**

 **"Bye Anna, bye Mr Crepsley." Evra called back after us as we walked away from his tent and back to our trailers.**

 **"You should get some rest if you have to be up tomorrow for daytime duties. You cannot possibly stay awake." Larten suggested to me.**

 **"I'm used to it, you keep me awake most days anyway." I replied with a suggestive look so that Larten knew what I was referring to. Larten often kept me awake because we would be having sex, we had sex at nighttime and during the day so neither of us would sleep much if at all. That is why quite often nobody could find us. this was just as well because we didn't want to be disturbed whilst we were at it.**

 **It was roughly two am and most of the performers and staff were asleep, only those of us who are nocturnal were still awake. When all the performers go to bed it gets very quiet and boring around the campsite, most of the tents are up but nobody is in them, the fire burns all night long so that the performers can cook breakfast on it in the morning. The only activity at night comes from the Little People, they tend to walk around the site and check that everything has been locked up. They also check to make sure that there aren't any staff or performers causing trouble.**

 **The Little People have in the past been the victims of many a practical joke and now they are wise to it. One former performer who had been known as Bradley Stretch used to play a lot of jokes on the Little People, in the end he ran into trouble and he was eaten by them. His remains were fed to the Wolf Man by Evra. As a result of this the other performers have always treated the Little People with respect.**

 **Seeing as only Larten and myself were awake we decided to go and hunt, Larten had promised the performers some meat and that is what they were going to get. We waited until the early hours of the morning to hunt, it wasn't quite dawn but it wasn't dark either. This was the hour when a herd of deer felt safe enough to come out and feed, it was also the hour when there were no humans around. If we came across a field full of cattle or sheep for example we could take one or two and nobody would ever know.**

 **Larten did not take me hunting very often, he was so fast that I couldn't keep up. He would flit but as a half vampire I couldn't do this, he used to flit past a deer or a stag and as he did so he'd jump on it and slit its throat before it knew what was happening. He'd gut it and carry it back to the campsite ready for roasting.**

 **Larten managed to bring down a huge stag, it had massive antlers with ten points on each one. He carried it as if it were light as a feather, he was immensely strong. I had caught a couple of rabbits but I didn't kill them, I just had them cuddled up against my chest as they were only babies. They were curious and as such they jumped onto my lap, I used my speed to scoop them up and hold them both. They wiggled initially but they soon settled down and then they stayed put. I was holding one whilst the other one sat on me and then I'd put one down and hold the other one. They were brown, fluffy and cute. I wished that I could have kept them but I had a cat (who hissed at me because of my smell) and a hamster who was getting old. He still ran around in his wheel like a lunatic though.**

 **"Come Anna we cannot afford to waste time, the dawn is drawing near. Put those babies back where you found them." Larten instructed, I of course obeyed him. I placed each of the baby rabbits back into the long grass where I had seen them initially, I stood up, brushed the rabbit fluff off of my clothes using my hands and then I followed Larten back to the campsite. I took one last look at them before I saw them hop back into their warren, it was an image I'd never forget.**

 **We arrived back at the campsite and the sun was already shining, Larten prepared the stag for roasting over the fire before he bid me good day and went to bed. He liked to be in bed before the sun got too strong. It was Wintertime so the sun was weak but Larten still didn't like to be awake whilst the sun was up.**

 **I knew that Larten wouldn't be asleep straight away so I went to his trailer, I didn't have to knock so I just turned the handle and walked in. I was the only person who could enter without knocking, everybody else including Mr Tall had to knock and wait for an answer.**

 **"I knew that you wouldn't be asleep yet, it is cold out there this morning." I said as I sat down in the armchair. Larten was in his coffin, he was sitting up in it.**

 **"Stay inside and warm up, I think that we shall have snow." Larten replied.**

 **"I love snow, I could build a snowman." I commented.**

 **"What is it about snow that women like so much?" Larten asked me.**

 **"I think it is romantic to watch it falling, it is beautiful when the ground is covered in white. People go for walks in it with their lovers and all you see is two sets of footprints side by side." I sighed and imagined us going on such a walk together.**

 **"I do not like snow. I have had too many snowball wars with Gavnur, he really is a child in the body of a man." Larten declared.**

 **"That sounds funny to watch." I smirked.**

 **"Darren used to drive me up the wall, he would always want to have snowball fights with me and the other performers. I never got any peace when he was around and snow was on the ground." Larten complained.**

 **"You would not deny me if I challenged you would you?" I asked suggestively.**

 **"No, I would not deny you anything my love." Larten answered.**

 **"Then I hereby challenge you to a snowball fight as soon as the snow falls and it settles on the ground. You need to lighten up a bit." I concluded with a broad smile.**

 **"Anna, I take little if any pleasure in such things. I would far rather sleep through the whole snowstorm. In fact I would prefer to stay in my trailer with you in this coffin. I could give you a very good reason to stay in here with me rather than having a snowball fight outside." Larten acknowledged as he gave me a suggestive look.**

 **"The other performers will be waking up soon, I have duties to do today. As much as I would like to stay in here with you I cannot do so." I explained.**

 **"Then please allow me the opportunity to make you scream before too many of the performers hear us." Larten responded.**

 **"Oh go on then but please be gentle, I am still sore from the fight and my arm is not healed yet either." I whispered as I lay down in Larten's coffin. I wanted to keep the noise down as much as I could. I stripped off my clothing and then Larten kissed me, he positioned himself as we were kissing and then he slowly penetrated me, he didn't go too deep initially as he wanted to get me aroused first. I could feel him slipping in and out of me which made me want more, I could feel myself getting closer to climax but I held back until the sensations increased. I wanted to feel it as much as possible, I was trying to control my breathing so that I wouldn't make too much noise but it wasn't that easy, with every movement Larten was going deeper into me until he went as deep as he could go, that was enough to tip me over the edge and I ended up being far louder than I had intended to be because I had been holding back for so long. I didn't care, I was in a serious relationship and I loved Larten a lot so there was nothing wrong with what we were doing. We lay together for a while after we had finished having sex, Larten held me in his arms and if not for my list of duties I would have stayed there all day.**

 **I got up out of the coffin, got myself dressed and then I went to the campfire. I had to check on the roasting stag to see if it was cooking OK. There were quite a few performers sitting around the fire when I arrived, they were all turning the meat and keeping an eye on it. They were all hungry and I was starving. They had made some more porridge so I had a bowlful whilst I waited for the venison (this is the name given to deer meat) to cook through properly.**

 **"Anna, can you give Mr Crepsley a message?" Evra asked me quietly as he ate his porridge.**

 **"Yes of course I can, he's asleep right now though as it is the daytime." I replied.**

 **"Well when he wakes up please tell him that the Cirque Du Freak performers thank him for his gift of this meal. Oh and I'd appreciate it if you could tone it down slightly when you're together." Evra whispered to me before he gave me a knowing wink.**

 **"I will pass the message of thanks onto Larten when he wakes up. He will always provide food for all of us, it is one of his jobs." I acknowledged. I took Evra to a place where we could talk alone, I didn't want the whole Cirque Du Freak knowing my private business but I trusted Evra.**

 **"I am sorry if we disturbed you Evra, it was not intended." I said apologetically.**

 **"I was already awake, I was walking past Mr Crepsley's trailer when I heard you two, what was going on in there? I've never heard so much screaming in my life, I thought you were being tortured." Evra asked me.**

 **"No, I wasn't being tortured. It is quite the opposite in fact. We were having sex, vampires like it rough so we can be quite loud at times. Larten made me have an orgasm, it was really powerful and quite often when a woman whether she is a vampiress or not has an orgasm it sends her body into overdrive. The pleasure and the sensations are intense, it is like entering Paradise whilst still being alive. Women scream when they orgasm, I am not sure why but it must be something to do with the amount of stimulation that they feel." I explained.**

 **"It makes sense to me now." Evra answered.**

 **"It feels indescribable, when I scream it is out of pure ecstasy and pleasure. Larten is a very good lover. I do not really want to go into details with you though, it is a very private thing as I'm sure you can understand." I concluded.**

 **"Yes, I uderstand. I won't ask you anything else about it and I won't mention it again." Evra promised.**

 **"This conversation never happened." I said sternly.**

 **"No, it didn't." Evra winked.**

 **I left Evra and I went back to the campfire, the joint of venison was cooking nicely and it smelt so good. I was looking forward to eating it, I couldn't eat the whole thing obviously but I'd get my fair share. The other performers and staff were all chatting away to each other, sometimes I felt like I wasn't really a part of them at all. I had only performed once on the stage and because I was a half vampire I had my own clan, I wasn't part of the Cirque Du Freak in my own right. I just helped them out and they put up with me because they didn't want to get on the wrong side of Larten. I wasn't a freak in their eyes because I wasn't unique or special, I didn't have any talents as such and I wasn't the first half vampire who had been at the Cirque Du Freak either.**

 **I checked the meat to see if it was cooked, it smelt cooked but I took a carving knife and I cut off a small piece of the joint just to check that it was cooked all the way through. It was cooked to perfection so I asked a couple of the other performers to help me remove it from the spit. We carried it and then it was placed away from the fire so it would cool down a bit. Not everybody could handle roasting hot meat. It was put on a long picnic table that had a wooden slab on it where all the cooked meat was placed before it was served. The slab was washed every day and covered over when it wasn't in use so that it would be kept hygienic.**

 **"Queue up everybody, the meat is ready." I announced, all of the performers and staff formed a queue. They held their plates out and I cut an equal amount of meat off for each person. The performers ate first, then the staff and then the Little People. It had always been this way. I was technically a performer as I had been on the stage so I cut off my own meat and I ate it, what was left over would be saved for the nocturnal performers when they woke up. The Wolf Man got his share too, I took it to him myself.**

 **The Wolf Man was in an excitable mood, he was going crazy but when he saw me he sat down. I think he wanted to be exercised but nobody was brave enough to let him out of his cage in case something went wrong.**

 **"Look what I have for you." I said as I held up a large chunk of the roasted venison. The Wolf Man howled loudly, he put his long arm through the bars of the cage. I opened the cage door and he walked out of it slowly, all the time his eyes were fixed on the meat. He sat down like a dog would, he seemed to be calm enough so I reached out to him slowly. I was still very cautious when handling or having anything to do with the Wolf Man. The Wolf Man came closer to me so I stroked his hairy back very gently.**

 **"Here, take it." I said as I handed him the meat, he went back inside his cage and he ate it. I saw him ripping it into smaller pieces, when he got to the bone he savoured it and he gnawed on it for a while like a dog. He was more wolf than man and he was very dangerous. He could turn on you in an instant, one false move would mean death so I made sure to lock his cage up securely.**

 **I went back to the campfire after I had fed the Wolf Man, most of the staff and performers were still eating either their meat or their stew. A vegetable stew had been cooked for the vegetarian staff members (none of the performers were vegetarian). I had to help a couple of the costume makers take measurements, all of the costumes had been burnt in the fire so they all had to be remade from scratch. Most of the performers had their measurements written down on paper but not all of them were accurate so they had to be taken again, some performers had grown and some performers had never worn a particular costume but now they wanted one so they had their measurements taken also.**

 **Luckily I had been wearing my stage costume when I had faught the vampaneze. I had removed the sleeves because I didn't like them. When my arm was gashed open by the vampaneze that I had faught the costume hadn't been ruined, it just had bloodstains on it but seeing as my costume was dark red they were hardly noticeable.**

 **In relation to my arm it was healing but I hadn't removed the bandage to check it, I would have to wait for Larten to wake up as he was the one who tended to wounds around the camp. He wasn't a doctor but he knew enough about herbs to cure certain ailments using natural remedies.**

 **I had a lot of duties to do, after I had finished taking measurements from the performers I had to help unload the van that contained all of the costume material, sewing machines and things like that. As I was so fast and rather strong the van was unloaded in no time, unfortunately I had no skills when it came to sewing or I'd have helped out with making the costumes. Instead of spending hours stitching I had to run into the nearest town and buy a new tent, it had to be the largest tent that I could find as that would be our new backstage area until Mr Tall provided us with a new big top.**

 **The town wasn't far away from the campsite, at least it wasn't far for me with my speed. I reached it within ten minutes by walking super fast. I couldn't flit but I could move like lightning if I had to. I was looking for a camping shop or one of those outdoor adventure stores. I came across a place called** _ **Mountain Warehouse**_ **that had all kinds of outdoor clothing and equipment as part of its window display. I remembered going to this shop as a human but I'd never been to a shop that was this big before. It had three floors of items for sale.**

 **I had a look at where all the tents were on display. They had small tents, larger tents, family tents, tents with windows, tents with a place to put your muddy shoes and tents with awnings. They did not have any circus style big top tents that I could see. I left the shop and continued searching, then it dawned on me that a specialist tent wouldn't be in shops, it would most likely be for hire from one of those wedding marquee or gazebo companies. We'd probably have to hire it and then return it within a set time period, that didn't suit us as we needed something more permenant but I couldn't return to the campsite with nothing.**

 **I telephoned a local company, it dealt with weddings and it offered a marquee hiring service. I told them what I was looking for and to my relief they had exactly what I was looking for. The company even agreed to deliver the big top tent to our campsite for no extra charge.**

 **I returned to the campsite. I had to wait for the delivery to arrive and then I had to sign for it, I was relieved that we would at least have a big top if nothing else. We needed it to keep the props in and it provided a place where the performers could get ready before they went on stage. All of the upcoming shows had been cancelled and the performers had nowhere to go other than their trailers or the campfire, the big top was an indoor communal area where they could all unite in bad weather so it was essential that we had one.**

 **The delivery arrived, I signed for it and then I spent the next four and a half hours putting it up, even with my super speed it took ages because there were so many parts and poles that had to be fitted together. When the new big top was erected and secured in place with pegs and ropes I knocked on everybody's trailers, I wanted everybody to see their new communal area that I had built. The Little People had helped with the ropes but I did the rest on my own, I even climbed up a ladder when I was draping the outer top cover over the inner cover, the big top had two layers that covered the poles. An inside layer that was like a lining and an outer, brightly coloured, waterproof layer that people could see for miles. The big top was the traditional sign of a circus and ours looked amazing, it was far better than our old one and it was twice as big on the inside which gave the performers more room to prepare their acts.**

 **When the performers saw our new big top they couldn't believe their eyes. I knew at that moment that if I hadn't been classed as a member of the Cirque Du Freak previously I was certainly a member now...**


	13. Chapter 12

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 12:**

 **Mr Tall returned to the Cirque Du Freak the following evening, he had brought with him a new performer. I had no idea who the new performer was or what they could do. I was looking forward to finding out, I was sure that Mr Tall would gather us all together and introduce us to the new performer when he felt that the time was right. For the moment I was more concerned about what Mr Tall would say when we told him about the fire. It had wiped out our big top and everything that was inside it.**

 **When Mr Tall noticed our new and improved temporary big top circus tent he immediately wished to know what had gone on since he had been away. I was the one who explained everything to him and I didn't leave out any details either.**

 **"I wasn't away for very long, I come back to find the campsite in disarray, the big top gone and replaced, the costumes being remade from scratch, the props being remade and a general sense of uneasiness and fear around here." Mr Tall proclaimed to everybody.**

 **"We have been trying to fix things, not everything can be fixed so easily and hiring the new big top tent wasn't cheap, it has wiped out all of my wages." I remarked.**

 **"I understand, you've done what you can but allow me to sort the rest out. I am the ringmaster after all and I too have a few tricks up my sleeve." Mr Tall replied.**

 **"I just wanted to sort out the main issues, the big top was the biggest loss to us so I made replacing it my priority. I put it together. I spent over four hours putting it up and then the Little People dealt with the support ropes and pegs." I confirmed.**

 **"It is very nice, I like it but when we move on it will be a nightmare to take down and put up again." Mr Tall stated.**

 **"It is on hire, we only have it until we find a more permenant solution. It is here on a temporary basis." I declared.**

 **"I will sort everything out in due course. By the way this is Alicia and she is our new performer. Her talent is remarkable." Mr Tall said as a shy girl stood beside Mr Tall.**

 **"Hi, welcome to the Cirque Du Freak." I said.**

 **"Show Anna what you can do." Mr Tall told Alicia.**

 **"I can move objects without touching them." Alicia claimed.**

 **"Cool, can you show me?" I asked.**

 **"Sure. Pass me that chair over there." Alicia said so I did as she requested and I passed the chair to her.**

 **"Put it there." Alicia said as she handed me the chair back so I put it exactly where Alicia had told me to put it. Alicia stood beside me and she raised her hands up above her head.**

 **"Watch the chair carefully." Alicia said so I focused my eyes on it, it began to rise off of the floor and spin around in a circle. It went higher and higher until it was making large circles above our heads. It lowered itself and it stopped moving then the chair was once again stationary.**

 **"Wow, that was so awesome. How do you do it?" I asked.**

 **"I have no idea, I am telekenetic. I was born this way. As a baby I could move my bottle from inside the fridge to my mouth and feed myself when I was hungry, now I can move objects as large as a car to wherever I want them to go." Alicia explained.**

 **"With your talents I think that you'll be very useful around here." I replied.**

 **"I will perform my duties and I will make the audience stare at me in pure amazement." Alicia guarenteed.**

 **"I am sure that you will be a wonderful addition to our current performance line-up." Mr Tall concurred.**

 **"I agree, Alicia's skills are exactly what we need to liven up a show like ours." I concluded.**

 **"I'm only seventeen years old, by the time I'm twenty one I hope to have mastered my gift, sometimes objects fall when they're in the air and other times I cannot make them move at all." Alicia admitted.**

 **"I make mistakes sometimes, everybody does." I said honestly.**

 **"At least I have a home here for life, my parents don't understand me. They call me a freak, I've never had any friends. People are afraid of me." Alicia sighed sadly.**

 **"I know how that feels, I'm a half vampire so I don't really fit in either." I said sympathetically.**

 **"You're a what?" Alicia asked in amazement.**

 **"I'm a half vampire, half human mix." I reiterated.**

 **"How is that even possible?" Alicia asked.**

 **"How is it possible for you to move objects with your mind?" I asked back.**

 **"I've got no idea, I know one thing for sure though and that is this: I've always dreampt of becoming a telekenetic vampire." Alicia answered me.**

 **"Being a vampire isn't that great." I said honestly.**

 **"What is so bad about sleeping all day and partying all evening?" Alicia asked me.**

 **"Well that's just it. We don't sleep all day and party all night. Most of us sleep all day and then we work at nighttime, we have duties, we have laws and rules that we follow too. We have to hunt for food and we feed upon humans." I expanded.**

 **"Oh, I thought vampires had an easy life." Alicia said.**

 **"No, far from it in fact. It is a very hard life and most nights are a fight for survival. Since becoming a vampire I've been in two major fights, I've been stabbed and I've had my arm gashed open. I could have been killed, I am very lucky that I have survived so far." I responded seriously.**

 **"I hate fighting, I can't even bare to kill an animal for food. I'm a vegan." Alicia explained calmly.**

 **"You definately wouldn't make a good vampire then, we mainly eat meat that we've caught and killed with our bare hands. If we don't drink blood regularly then we age and die." I concluded.**

 **"You're right, I'd make a terrible vampire. I'd die within a few months because I wouldn't be eating any meat or drinking any blood." Alicia concluded.**

 **"You are best off staying as you are and living here with us at the Cirque Du Freak where you'll be safe and looked after properly." I commented truthfully.**

 **"I think that's the best option, especially now you've explained to me what being a vampire is actually like. Alicia concurred.**

 **"It is a great place to live, we all get on really well here. We are one big family." I happily pointed out.**

 **"Who is that over there?" Alicia asked me as I turned around to see who she was looking at. She was looking at Larten.**

 **"That man in red is Larten Crepsley, he's my lover." I answered.**

 **"He's gorgeous." Alicia proclaimed.**

 **"Larten is everything I could want and more." I acknowledged.**

 **"You're so lucky," Alicia replied then she asked me; "Is he a vampire too?"**

 **"Yes, he was the one who turned me into a vampire. He saved my life and in exchange for saving my life I agreed to become a vampire and travel with him as his assistant. We fell in love and here we are almost two years on." I explained in some detail.**

 **"That is so sweet, I've never had a boyfriend." Alicia replied.**

 **"Maybe you'll find one here at the Cirque, a lot of people join the Cirque when they're single and they've got nowhere left to turn. They end up finding a home, a family and love here which often they've never known or experienced before." I remarked.**

 **"I hope so, can I meet your boyfriend please?" Alicia asked politely.**

 **"Why?" I enquired nervously.**

 **"I want to meet all of the performers and make some friends." Alicia told me.**

 **"I know of one performer who would be a good friend for you, his name is Evra Von." I suggested slowly.**

 **"What's he like?" Alicia asked, she sounded interested in him.**

 **"He's very nice, he adores snakes and he's roughly your age." I replied.**

 **"I'm not a fan of snakes." Alicia admitted.**

 **"Oh, you'll like Evra's snake. It is completely harmless." I said quickly.**

 **"It isn't poisonous is it?" Alicia asked nervously.**

 **"No, it isn't. Evra wouldn't let it hurt anybody anyway. He's very careful." I remarked truthfully.**

 **"OK, I'll meet him and his snake. Maybe I will learn to like snakes after all." Alicia replied.**

 **"Give Evra a chance, he's such a nice guy. He's my best friend." I answered.**

 **"Do you know where he is?" Alicia asked.**

 **"No I don't know where he is, he's probably in his tent or something." I answered, it was an educated guess because Evra was normally in his tent when he wasn't by the campfire.**

 **At this point Larten came over to see me, he had been chatting with Mr Tall.**

 **"Anna, pack your bags. We will be leaving the Cirque Du Freak." Larten said in a stern voice.**

 **"As you wish but we've only been here for a few months. I'd prefer to stay a bit longer." I replied honestly.**

 **"If we stay here then we shall miss the next vampire council. It only happens once every twelve years. The weather is mild, if we leave any later then it will be too hot to travel. If we were to leave after the Summer then will we miss the council. It will also be too harsh to travel because of how hard the winters are in the mountains. Blizzards happen daily in the mountains and we cannot travel over black ice and rocks." Larten clarified.**

 **"I understand, I will of course obey your instructions and pack my bags." I answered submissively.**

 **"Very well, we will be leaving tomorrow night. I should like to leave at sunset so please be ready to go by then. You should say your goodbyes to the performers and pack your bags tonight." Larten suggested.**

 **"Yes, I will be ready. What should I pack?" I asked.**

 **"Pack basic essentials only. Boots, ropes, jackets and the like are not permitted. We travel barefoot and flitting is forbidden on the way to the mountain too. We will be walking there." Larten told me.**

 **"It sounds like a test of endurance to me." I concluded.**

 **"Yes, it is a test of endurance and strength." Larten confirmed.**

 **"I am young and healthy, I think I'll survive a trek through the mountains." I acknowledged.**

 **"You will survive if you follow my lead and do what I tell you to do. I have made this trek a dozen times or more so I know what I am doing." Larten replied, he seemed to be very wise.**

 **"I will do whatever you instruct me to do." I remarked obediently.**

 **"Very well, go now and prepare yourself." Larten commented.**

 **"Just one thing Larten, can I introduce you to Alicia? She's the newest performer to join us here. She can move objects with her mind without touching them." I explained.**

 **"Hello." Alicia said quietly, she was blushing a lot.**

 **"Welcome to the Cirque Du Freak, I will look forward to seeing you perform in due course. I have a performing spider and she does all kinds of tricks." Larten responded.**

 **"Anna, how can you be so fortunate?" Alicia asked me.**

 **"I guess it was destiny." I replied with a wink.**

 **"You are really good looking." Alicia said to Larten.**

 **"Thank you for your compliment but I am not single so do not expect anything." Larten remarked.**

 **"Oh no, I didn't mean anything by it." Alicia quickly responded, she was blushing even more now.**

 **"I'm going to start saying my goodbyes to everyone now, I'll meet you later where our trailers are parked." I said to Larten, he had his arms around me and he was holding me close to him.**

 **I turned my body slightly and leaned into Larten, when he held me it was loosely around my waist. On rare occasions we would stand next to each other with our hands linked, I didn't like public displays of affection and neither did Larten so we kept the physical side of our relationship private. We hated idle gossip too, we didn't want anybody talking about us or our relationship. I stayed standing up for a few more moments, I had my head nuzzled into Larten's chest, then I put my arms around his neck and hugged him, there was nobody in the immediate vicinity so I stole a quick kiss because I was a rebel and then I left to start packing my bags.**

 **I said goodbye to the performers that I met on the way back to my trailer. They were sad to hear that I was leaving them again but I promised to return to the Cirque Du Freak again someday.**

 **"It is such a shame that you have to leave us, you have helped us out no end whilst you've been here." Hans Hands said sadly.**

 **"I am a vampire, I must present myself to the council as that is our way." I replied, I was sounding more like Larten every time I spoke.**

 **"I understand, you have your rules and regulations and we have ours." Hans Hands acknowledged.**

 **"I am only following vampire tradition, I am more worried about taking the trials to be honest." I admitted.**

 **"The trials?" Hans asked me curiously.**

 **"Yes, vampires get put through a series of five tests of strength and character. Some are easy and some are almost impossible to complete." I explained.**

 **"Do you have to take them?" Gertha Teeth enquired.**

 **"If I want the clan to accept me as one of them then yes I do." I confirmed.**

 **"Good luck with them then." Gertha Teeth replied.**

 **"Thanks, I'll be back here next Spring. By then I'll be a fully fledged member of the vampire clan." I answered proudly.**

 **"Bye Anna, I'm sure that Larten will take good care of you." Hans Hands remarked confidently.**

 **"I'll be fine, I need to start packing now." I concluded as I walked upto the front door of my trailer and unlocked it. I watched Gertha and Hans walking away and back towards the main campsite, I'd go and see the rest of the performers later.**

 **I got my suitcase out and I emptied it, it had all kinds of clothing and stuff in there that wouldn't be permitted at the mountain. I grabbed a couple of long sleeved shirts, my waterproof trousers, my fleece pullover and some underwear. I would not be going anywhere without clean knickers! I was meant to leave my shoes and socks behind but I took them anyway, you couldn't wear them whilst making the journey to the mountain but there was no rule about not wearing them once you'd arrived. I decided to pack my snowboots rather than shoes as they had ice grips on them. I packed my jewellery, hairbrush, my wash kit and a towel. I also packed my weapons just in case of an emergency.**

 **Larten came into my trailer to inspect what I had packed. He was very particular about following rules and regulations.**

 **"What are these doing in here?" Larten asked as he threw my snowboots across the trailer.**

 **"I thought that we'd be going barefoot whilst travellng to the mountain but I figured that shoes were permitted after we've arrived there." I explained.**

 **"Seba Nile will provide you with shoes or even boots if you desire them when we arrive, you do not need to carry shoes or boots with you." Larten reiterated.**

 **"But they will not have snowboots in a half size, you know how hard it is for me to find shoes that fit me properly." I complained bitterly.**

 **"Rules are rules, do not question them." Larten snapped sternly.**

 **"Larten it is not as though I'm actually wearing them, I am just wheeling them along in my suitcase." I explained, I was upset.**

 **"You are not taking that suitcase either, you cannot possibly wheel it over rocky mountainous paths and it is not storm or snowproof. Your backpack is all you are allowed to take." Larten told me firmly.**

 **"Oh very well but my clothing and most of my essential kit will not fit into my backpack." I answered.**

 **"Essential kit?" Larten said with his eyebrows raised.**

 **"My towel, my clothing, my wash bag, my underwear and my weapons." I answered simply.**

 **"There is plenty of clothing at the mountain to choose from, I am sure that there will be something in the storeroom that fits you." Larten replied.**

 **"I prefer my own clothing, not only does it fit me properly but it looks good on me too." I remarked.**

 **"If you can fold up your clothing small enough so that it fits in your backpack then you may take it." Larten conceeded.**

 **"I will try my best to get everything I need into my backpack." I answered. I emptied out my suitcase and refolded my clothing until it was really tightly packed into my backpack. I managed to get quite a bit of stuff into my backpack which surprised me. I packed as much as I could take, I knew I'd need all of it.**

 **I left my trailer and I went over to where the campfire was, a lot of performers were sitting around it eating their supper. I was hungry too so I queued up and waited to be served, on the menu tonight was vegetable broth and bread rolls. It had been made by Evra and Truska using a recipe they found in a book. It tasted pretty good too, it was warm and filling. I had a bowlful and there was plenty to go around, it was just what I needed after the stress that I had been under whilst packing my backpack.**

 **"Guys and girls may I have your attention please?" I announced to the performers who were gathered around the campfire.**

 **"Anna, what is it?" Evra asked me.**

 **"Tomorrow night Larten and I are leaving the Cirque Du Freak and we will return to it next Spring. The Vampire Council is gathering and I must be presented to them, they only meet once every twelve years. We have to go to this council or we'll have to wait for another twelve years until the next one." I explained to everybody.**

 **"We'll miss you Anna, you're so helpful and let's not forget how much effort you put in when it came to replacing our big top." Cormac Limbs said.**

 **"It was my fault that the vampaneze came here and destroyed our original big top. I should have slaughtered them when I had the chance but I didn't, I let them live. I have replaced as much as I can." I commented.**

 **"We appreciate everything you've done for us. If your place is with your own clan then you must go and join them." Rhamus Twobellies replied.**

 **"I shall meet with the clan and attend the council meetings." I concluded.**

 **"You are a true vampire, every time we talk you sound and act more like Mr Crepsley." Evra stated.**

 **"I act accordingly. Larten has taught me many things and we spend a lot of time together." I answered.**

 **"The Cirque Du Freak won't be the same without you two here." Evra confirmed sadly.**

 **"Without you two here to keep us awake we'll be able to get some sleep." Cormac Limbs laughed.**

 **"You are rather loud when you are together even if you don't intend to be." Gertha Teeth added.**

 **"Nobody says that you have to set up your tents or trailers near to ours. We have ours away from the main camp so as not to disturb any of you. If you choose to pitch up your tents near to our trailers then that is your problem." I concluded.**

 **"I never thought of that." Cormac Limbs admitted.**

 **"Nor Me." Gertha Teeth responded.**

 **"Well we leave tomorrow at sunset so soon you won't have to worry about us keeping you awake with our activities." I acknowledged.**

 **"All I hear is banging and a lot of other strange sounds. What exactly are you doing in there that causes all that racket? What is it? A vampire game?" Cormac questioned me, it was like an inturragation.**

 **"Surely you know what couples do with each other when they're alone together?" I responded in answer to Cormac's questions.**

 **"I do yes but surely you two don't..." Cormac trailed off.**

 **"Why shouldn't we? We're both adults and we love each other so what is your issue?" I asked Cormac, the other performers were trying hard not to laugh at him.**

 **"You are not married, I wouldn't consider doing you know what unless I was married." Cormac admitted.**

 **"For vampires it is different, we don't tend to get married because we live for so long. Could you imagine spending a couple of hundred years or more with one person?" I asked.**

 **"No, I couldn't. I see your point Anna and you are both adults that have given their consent aren't you?" Cormac asked me, he was firing questions at an alarming rate.**

 **"We made pledges to one another before anything took place, in making the pledges to each other we gave consent." I explained.**

 **"That is OK then, I'm satisfied that nothing untoward is going on in this campground." Cormac confirmed, all of the other performers were either stiffling giggles or blushing furiously.**

 **"Right, now that's out of the way we can talk about something else." I suggested.**

 **I was about to change the subject when Larten appeared beside me in a blur. One minute he was nowhere in sight and the next he had joined us by the campfire.**

 **"Cormac Limbs I should like a word with you, several in fact in private." Larten declared.**

 **"Oops." Gertha Teeth replied grinning and at that point everybody around the campfire erupted in laughter. Cormac went raspberry red.**

 **"Cut my head off now please." Cormac said as he stood up looking rather embarrased.**

 **Larten and Cormac walked away from the campfire. Only I could hear what Larten was saying because he was still in earshot of me. Nobody else could hear them talking though. A few minutes later Cormac and Larten returned to the campfire, Cormac looked very embarrased and ashamed of himself and Larten looked stern.**

 **"Anna I apologise for my probing questions, what I asked you was none of my business." Cormac announced apologetically.**

 **"That's OK, everybody gets curious about things sometimes." I replied.**

 **"All of you listen up." Larten commanded to everybody who was sitting at the campfire.**

 **"Yes, what is it Mr Crepsley?" Evra asked.**

 **"I am a very private individual. I do not expect my private activities between my mate and I to be discussed and ridiculed. What I do in the privacy of my trailer is not any of your concern. I do not wish to hear any such discussions taking place, is that clear?" Larten stated firmly.**

 **Everybody around the campfire nodded in agreement and Cormac hung his head in shame.**

 **"Now that matter of business has been concluded I have come to bid farewell to all of you, you will no doubt be aware by now that Anna and I will be leaving at sunset for the mountain. We must attend the next vampire council." Larten acknowledged.**

 **"Yes, we had heard that you were going there." Evra Von said.**

 **"What is it like?" Gertha Teeth asked.**

 **"It is a mountain, we have an underground network of tunnels and hallways where we reside whilst the council is in session. We must travel there on foot, we walk without shoes or socks because getting there is a test." Larten explained.**

 **"It sounds like a challenge." Evra concluded.**

 **"It is a challenge to weed out the weak vampires from the strong vampires." Larten confirmed.**

 **"I would not survive such a journey, my cold blood would freeze." Evra said.**

 **"The journey is not meant for those who are not vampires, it is designed in a way so that no human would be able to follow us and no vampire hunters either." Larten explained.**

 **"That makes a lot of sense, the last thing you need is vampire hunters or worse tracking your trails and discovering your mountain refuge." Evra replied.**

 **"Exactly, that is why we chose this location and the sunlight there is weak too." Larten concluded.**

 **"Well you don't want to burn and die so a lack of sunlight is also good." Evra concurred.**

 **What time is it?" I asked as I tried to change the subject.**

 **"It is a few hours before the dawn. We have maybe six hours of darkness left." Larten answered me.**

 **"For us that means bedtime, it is late." Evra said as he scooped up his snake and headed off to his tent.**

 **"Me too, I'm tired." Gertha Teeth replied.**

 **Truska said something in her odd language and then she hugged me before she too went to her trailer.**

 **"I think she was saying goodbye to us." I said to Larten.**

 **"I have no idea what she said to you, only Evra understands her language." Larten replied.**

 **"It is just us left here now, everybody else is in bed or they are going to bed." I said suggestively.**

 **"Well then we can sit by the fire and keep each other company." Larten said as he led me over to a bench that had been carved out of a giant log. We sat down next to each other, Larten put his arm around me and I rested my head on his shoulder. We talked softly to each other, our enhanced hearing meant that we could hear each other clearly even if we barely spoke.**

 **We stayed snuggled up on the bench for a long time, the fire burnt on. It had plenty of logs on it to keep it going, we tried to keep it burning because we used it to keep warm and cook our meals on.**

 **I shifted myself slightly and I lifted my head up.**

 **"Are you alright?" Larten asked me, he didn't like it when I fidgeted.**

 **"I'm fine, it's just a bit hard to steal a kiss from you when my head is resting on your chest." I replied innocently.**

 **"My dear you have no need to steal kisses from me, I will always give them to you willingly." Larten replied before he kissed me sweetly.**

 **"What am I to you?" I asked.**

 **"You are my mate, I care about you and I want you to be happy." Larten answered almost immediately.**

 **"That isn't quite what I meant, I was referring to a title or a name that you can give me like your dark princess or something." I explained.**

 **"You wish for me to give you a pet name?" Larten asked me.**

 **"Something like that." I admitted.**

 **"I shall have to think of one that suits you, what am I to you?" Larten enquired.**

 **"I call you my beloved or my missing piece." I remarked honestly.**

 **"Do you feel incomplete without me in your life?" Larten asked.**

 **"Yes, of course I do. I am completely and utterly in love with you." I stated.**

 **"I did not know that your feelings for me were that strong." Larten answered as he racked his brains and tried to think of an appropriate name for me.**

 **"I'd die for you because I love you that much." I acknowledged truthfully.**

 **"I hope that you do not ever get put into that position." Larten commented.**

 **"I hope that too." I added.**

 **"If we are ever in a position where we must fight for survival then I will not surrender, if I must die on the battlefield then I shall die by your side protecting you until the last breath of life leaves my body." Larten declared.**

 **"I don't doubt that, we shall fight side by side until the bitter bloody end. If we die then we will die on our feet like warriors and not cowards." I answered.**

 **"That is the vampire way." Larten confirmed.**

 **"I know it is the vampire way, you have told me before." I said.**

 **"You are very similar in some ways to Arra Sails, I can see her in you. Sometimes I look at you and I have to look twice." Larten admitted.**

 **"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" I asked nervously.**

 **"It is a good thing." Larten answered.**

 **"I'll never be Arra Sails, nobody can ever replace her and nor should they." I concluded.**

 **"I know that, it is just when I look at you with your long, dark hair and your eyes I see her. You have her beauty but unlike Arra you are much calmer and we do not argue with each other. Arra and I would argue about everything and then she would storm off in a rage." Larten told me.**

 **"I'd never do that, I can control myself." I remarked.**

 **"Yes, you seem to conduct yourself very well. I hardly ever have to correct you if at all." Larten acknowledged.**

 **"I do try my best to please you and be a good assistant." I stated.**

 **"I am aware of this, Darren used to vex me greatly but you are so eager to learn that it makes my job as a mentor much easier. You remember everything I teach you but Darren was hopeless when I first blooded him. He refused to drink human blood, he questioned my authority and he was very immature." Larten asserted.**

 **"He was only eleven or twelve when you blooded him. Boys take much longer to mature than girls do, I'm in my mid twenties so I am fully grown and I know how a lady should conduct herself. I'm not a spoilt brat either." I commented.**

 **"No, you are far from being a brat but you are spoilt. I have something for you." Larten said as he produced a wooden box from inside his cloak.**

 **"You didn't have to get me anything. You have given me enough already." I remarked humbly.**

 **"I know that but I saw it and I thought you might like it." Larten replied.**

 **I opened the box and inside was some kind of tiara. I took it out of the box and I held it up so that I could see it better. The light from the fire made it flash and sparkle.**

 **"Wow, I don't quite know what to say to you except thank you." I stuttered, Larten had actually made me speechless.**

 **"Here, let me put it on for you." Larten said as he fiddled with it until it sat on my head perfectly.**

 **"Is there a mirror anywhere?" I asked, I was dying to see if it suited me or not.**

 **"There is one in the box on the inside of the lid." Larten commented. I held the box at an angle so that the light from the fire would shine on the mirror and allow me to see my face in it.**

 **I studied my reflection carefully, the tiara was so light I could barely feel it but it dazzled so brightly.**

 **"This tiara is beautiful but when will I ever have the chance to wear it? I cannot walk around with it on all the time can I?" I asked.**

 **"No, it is not for frequent wear. You may wear it at the Festival of the Undead and for special occasions or celebrations." Larten answered.**

 **"Is it diamonds?" I asked.**

 **"It has diamonds in it yes and a few other gemstones too." Larten replied.**

 **"It is beautiful, I just don't think I deserve such a gift." I remarked.**

 **"You need something special to wear at the Festival of the Undead. We wear our finest clothing, we drink a lot and we challenge each other to duels and the like. After that we have the howling contest, the winner will be referred to by their name followed by the words of the howl until the next council." Larten explained.**

 **"That sounds interesting, I'm looking forward to meeting the clan and I'm looking forward to the Festival of the Undead too." I said happily.**

 **"I will be glad to see Seba Nile again and I would like to know how Darren is getting along as a Prince." Larten remarked thoughtfully.**

 **"I too would like to meet Prince Darren. It would be good to make some new friends with members of my own clan." I concluded.**

 **"Princes do not make friends, they rule and they decide things." Larten replied.**

 **"Oh well I'd like to meet him in any event." I confirmed.**

 **"I shall introduce you to him and to some of my friends, they will accept you and treat you accordingly." Larten told me.**

 **"What about your former blessed mate? How shall she and I deal with each other?" I asked nervously.**

 **"Leave her to me, I must speak with her about certain matters regarding the dissolving of our blessed mateship and the dividing of property. Call it a divorce decree if you like." Larten stated.**

 **"I understand, it makes sense actually. I do hope that you didn't spend too much money on her because she clearly didn't deserve it." I added.**

 **"I did not keep a record of the costs but I can remember every item that I bought for her and why I bought it for her." Larten acknowledged.**

 **"If you give a gift then you cannot get it back, she will be entitled to keep everything that you bought for her. If on the other hand you bought her something and you said to her words to the effect of this is not a gift, you must pay me back for this item then she will have to either give you the money for it or return the item to you. That is the law." I explained.**

 **"I believe that is human law, vampire laws are different. Seeing as there has never been a blessed mateship which has ended in this manner there are no specific rules in relation to it. I believe that what you say is true and it sounds like an ideal way to proceed, the Princes will have to dissolve the blessed mateship officially as they were the ones in granted it in the first place." Larten confirmed.**

 **"Yes, I think you'll have to make a public declaration of your intentions to dissolve your blessed mateship, that way if anybody objects to it being dissolved then they can say their piece." I reiterated.**

 **"Yes, that is what will happen. I expected as much. I just wish that we could have sorted this out sooner, it has been playing on my mind for a long time." Larten admitted.**

 **"I can imagine, it must be very stressful for you. I am glad that you've found happiness with me after going through so much trouble with your previous partners." I replied happily.**

 **"We match each other very well, I have not known anybody be so submissive before. I do not mean to control you but when I ask you to do something you never answer back, if you question it then there is a reason behind it. It is not as though you question my instructions just to annoy me." Larten acknowledged.**

 **"When you ask me to do something and I question it I only do that because I am curious or I think that there may be a better solution, of course if you ask me to do something that I haven't done before then I may ask you how to do a certain thing but that's it." I clarified.**

 **"I understand that. Every time I would ask Darren to do something for me he would ask me why he had to do it, that used to drive me up the wall. Sometimes he would refuse to do certain things, he said it was his human side that made him refuse to do those things. I did not have the heart or the inclination to punish him, eventually he began to listen to my instructions. Darren learnt from me that because I am much older and wiser than he is I know what I am talking about, after he learnt this he had much more respect for me." Larten told me.**

 **"I on the other hand have nothing but respect for you, I love you a lot. Even if we weren't in love with each other you are my mentor and the vampire who takes care of me, I have nothing but the utmost respect for you." I acknowledged.**

 **"I am aware of that, I can tell when somebody is being truthful or not." Larten remarked.**

 **"Is it me or is it nearly time for the sunrise?" I asked.**

 **"The sun is due to rise in an hour or so, have we really been awake all night talking?" Larten asked me.**

 **"It looks like it, nobody else is around. It is just us and the fire." I commented.**

 **"We are leaving at sunset, we need to get as much sleep as we can before we begin our journey." Larten told me.**

 **"I agree, shall we return to our trailers?" I asked.**

 **"I was going to suggest sleeping on this bench by the fire." Larten remarked.**

 **"That's no good, we can't sleep here. When the sun rises it'll shine on us both and naturally we can't sleep in direct sunlight." I replied.**

 **"I was planning to move the bench or build us a shelter around the bench so that the sun would not touch our skin." Larten stated.**

 **"If you can build us a temporary shelter then I do not mind sleeping here on this bench, we can snuggle up to each other. I can use your cloak as a blanket."**

 **"I shall go and find some materials that I can use to build a shelter. I know how to build one, I have made many in my lifetime." Larten said just before he vanished in a blur. I sat on the bench and waited for Larten to return to me with building materials, a minutes went by and then he was back. I watched him working, he built us a shelter around that bench in under twenty minutes. Larten used his extreme vampiric speed, one minute I was sitting on the bench with nothing around me and the next I was sitting on the bench next to him with a roof over my head.**

 **"That didn't take very long, I had no idea that you could move or build things so fast." I said as I made myself comfortable on the bench.**

 **"Why do you think I was once known as Quicksilver?" Larten asked me.**

 **"I thought it had something to do with knowing about metals and jewellery." I remarked.**

 **"No, I am called Quicksilver or rather I used to be called Quicksilver purely for my extreme speed and my ability to perform illusions." Larten remarked.**

 **"Well in building this shelter you certainly showed me how quick you can move when you choose to. Is it waterproof?" I asked.**

 **"It is weatherproof yes, it is temporary of course but it will keep the sun at bay until it sets." Larten said.**

 **"I think it is time to settle down and get some rest, this bench isn't very long so I can't stretch out much." I complained.**

 **"Just snuggle into me, you do not have to stretch out if you curl up into a little ball and rest your head on my lap." Larten suggested.**

 **"As long you don't mind me doing that, I'm too tired to waste time fidgeting." I yawned sleepily.**

 **"Just rest, you need sleep. I will be fine sitting here." Larten remarked as I followed his advice. I lay down with my knees against my chest, my head on his lap and his cloak was draped over me like a blanket. I yawned again and I pulled the cloak around me tightly. I could feel Larten's arm around me, when I had my head on his lap he was stroking my hair and running his fingers through it too.**

 **"Oops I've forgotten something." I said quietly.**

 **"Can it wait?" Larten asked me.**

 **"Well I guess it can wait but there are some things that I don't like waiting for." I answered.**

 **"What have you forgotten to do?" Larten asked.**

 **"I forgot to kiss you, we always kiss each other before we go to bed." I replied as I sat upright and shifted my position. Larten kissed me and then I kissed him back with more passion than normal. I don't know why I just wanted the kiss to last a bit longer. Nobody was around so it didn't matter, when there were people around I was lucky if I got a hug that lasted for more than a few moments. We continued kissing each other passionately for quite a while, when we were on our own we were very loving towards each other, we would speak softly between sharing kisses and that was when I'd tell Larten exactly how much he meant to me. In return Larten would loosen up a bit, he could be quite flirtatious at times but only when we were alone. He'd run his hand up my shirt and touch my skin, when Larten touched my skin it'd make me shiver and tingle all over. Sometimes it felt like electric was shooting through my spine and it certainly turned me on.**

 **This wasn't one of those times, we kissed each other a fair bit and we reaffirmed our pledges to one another. After we had done that I lay down again, pulled the cloak over my body and went to sleep. I figured out that I must have slept all through the daytime because when I opened my eyes again I could see no trace of sunlight, then I remembered about the shelter that was blocking out the light so I had no idea if it was the daytime or not. I could hear some voices outside the entrance of the shelter, our shelter was by the campfire and some of the performers were sitting around it and chatting together.**

 **I pulled the cloak around me again as it had shifted slightly and I could feel a bit of breeze coming through the entrance of the shelter, it was a cold wind but having the cloak draped over me kept me warm. I was sharing body heat with Larten too, he was still asleep and I didn't want to disturb him. I tried to go back to sleep but I couldn't so I sat up, the people talking outside were quite loud and sure enough their voices woke Larten up.**

 **"What is all that noise?" Larten grumbled sleepily.**

 **"I think the performers are awake darling, they're by the campfire talking." I replied before I yawned and settled back down.**

 **"It is the middle of the day, do they not know that we are trying to sleep in here?" Larten complained.**

 **"Obviously not." I said.**

 **"I am going to get up and tell those inconsiderate idiots to keep the noise down or I shall cut out their tongues." Larten replied threateningly as he stood up and left our shelter.**

 **"Afternoon, you're up early today." I heard Evra's cheery voice saying.**

 **"If you and the others cannot keep the noise levels down I shall cut out your tongues with my dagger, then I shall feed them to the Wolf Man. My mate and I are in there trying to sleep," Larten remarked angrily.**

 **"We're sorry, we thought the Little People had built it, had we known that you were in there sleeping we wouldn't have made so much racket." Evra explained apologetically.**

 **"Well now you know so keep your voices down." Larten said to everybody around the campfire before he returned to the shelter and out of the sunlight.**

 **"Now perhaps we can sleep the rest of the day away in peace and quiet." Larten stated as he sat back down on the bench.**

 **"Hopefully we'll get enough sleep before the sunset. We need to conserve our energy for the long journey ahead of us." I replied as I once again settled down beside Larten and pulled his cloak over me.**

 **"I shall wake you up when it is time to go however we must eat and feed before we leave. Sleep well my dark angel." Larten commented before he kissed me tenderly and pulled me closer to him...**


	14. Chapter 13

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 13:**

 **I think that I was somewhere between being asleep and awake, my eyes were partially open but I still felt tired. I could feel that my body was being prodded and that was when I sat up.**

 **"Huh, what's going on now?" I asked in a state of sleepy confusion before I yawned and lay back down.**

 **"Darling the sun is about to set, we need to get up and eat something then it will be time to begin our journey." Larten told me.**

 **"I'm so tired and cold I can't even move." I said as I rolled over and closed my eyes.**

 **"It is time to move on, we must make the most of the nighttime to get as far as we can. I have a bowl of rabbit casserole for you." Larten remarked, the smell of the food made me wake up. I yawned, stretched, got myself dressed and then I ate. After the rabbit casserole was gone I was much more alert and I knew that it was time to start walking.**

 **I had no shoes or socks on, I was wearing warm clothing but my feet were freezing. It had snowed during the daytime so the ground was cold and hard. It wasn't pleasant to walk on.**

 **I sat down on another bench by the campfire and I held out my feet to warm them up, I couldn't walk with frozen feet.**

 **"Anna we have to leave, we have a long way to travel tonight." Larten said impatiently.**

 **"I know that but my feet are freezing and my toes are numb. I can't walk with frozen feet now can I?" I asked sarcastically.**

 **"No, you cannot walk with frozen feet. I would hate it if you got frostbite on your toes." Larten admitted.**

 **"Well what can I do? I have to walk barefoot through snow and then I have to walk on a hard concrete pavement that is icy." I stated.**

 **"The rules only say to have bare feet whilst travelling up the mountain, I think that you could wear your snowboots and socks up until the point of stepping onto the base of the mountain. There is a boundary that we have to cross, after we cross that boundary we must go barefoot. Until then you can wear your snowboots." Larten explained, he was a stickler for rules and regulations.**

 **"Are you certain of this?" I asked.**

 **"I have made the journey many times, as long as we are in a human populated area we can wear shoes and socks. When we are no longer in a town, city or village and there are no houses around but only rocks and hard ground then we must remove our shoes." Larten told me.**

 **My feet were warmer now that I had been sitting by the campfire and I could feel my toes, I asked Evra to run to my trailer and fetch my thermal socks and my snowboots, when I put them on my feet felt much better. I stood up, stretched myself and picked up my backpack. I was ready to begin the journey to vampire mountain, to the council and to the place that many of my clan called home.**

 **"Bye everybody, I'll see you in the Spring." I said to the performers before I turned away from the fire. I began to walk out of the campsite and into the night with Larten by my side. When we had cleared the campsite and had travelled quite a long distance away from it Larten took my hand in his and we walked together through snow covered fields, we climbed over a few fences, we crossed a river and then we came upon another village. We had to walk from one end of the village to the other to get onto the main road, when we were on the main road we followed it until we came to more farmland and fields. I wondered where Larten was taking me but I never asked him, I just walked with him.**

 **We came upon a barn that had its door slightly ajar, Larten opened the lock with a click of his fingers and the barn door opened up fully.**

 **"The dawn is near, we can sleep inside here until it is dark again." Larten said.**

 **"Isn't this trespassing?" I asked.**

 **"No, I know the farmer. I have an arrangement with him." Larten replied as he set up some hay bales to use as a windbreak.**

 **"I will be back soon, make your bed out of the hay bales." Larten instructed me before he vanished. I began to shift some of the hay bales into a line that was long enough for me to lie on. I pushed them next to the ones that Larten had set out, this way we would have enough room to sleep next to each other. It also enabled me to sleep in Larten's arms and in doing so I slept better.**

 **I had just finished putting the last hay bale in place when Larten returned, he was carrying a small deer over his shoulder.**

 **"I have brought us a meal." Larten said as he skinned the deer and gutted it.**

 **"Shall I get the pots out?" I asked.**

 **"Not yet, we have to get a fire going first." Larten replied as he went outside to the firepit. The farmer obviously used it to burn up rubbish and other stuff, I watched Larten set up some kindling and then he lit the fire using a flint just like they did in ancient times. The fire roared and then I set the pots up, I made some stock and peeled a few vegetables before Larten cut the venison carcass into pieces. Some of the pieces were spit roasted and the rest went into the pot.**

 **"There is a lot of meat here for just the two of us, can we eat all of it?" I asked.**

 **"It is not only for us, we have company." Larten stated.**

 **"Where? I can't see anybody." I declared.**

 **"Just wait and see, you will love them trust me." Larten replied with a rare smile.**

 **"I trust you. I'm starving so I hope this meal won't take too long to cook." I said expectantly.**

 **"Keep the noise down or our company will not appear." Larten told me.**

 **I watched quietly for a few minutes and then I saw them approaching cautiously. Our company was a family of fox cubs and they were really cute.**

 **"Aww, they are adorable." I said as one came over to me.**

 **"I told you that you would love them, feed them some meat." Larten said, so I did. I ripped off some of the partially roasted meat and gave it to them. They licked my hands and sat down beside me like dogs do.**

 **"Can I stroke them?" I whispered.**

 **"Of course, they are quite tame." Larten said as one of the bolder foxes jumped onto his lap and curled up.**

 **"I have been hand feeding them seeing as their mother was killed. When I am not here the farmer feeds them as he only grows crops. The foxes keep the rats and rabbits away from munching on his corn." Larten told me as he threw some more meat on the ground for them.**

 **I watched the fox cubs tumbling around and playing with each other, they were about six to eight weeks old at a guess.**

 **"Have they got names?" I asked.**

 **"No, they are wild animals. They are not pets." Larten said.**

 **"Good point, they are really sweet. I feel so privileged to be able to get up close and personal with wildlife." I declared.**

 **"If you think that these fox cubs are cute just wait until you see the other wildlife that we may meet on our journey." Larten told me.**

 **"Animals like what exactly?" I asked.**

 **"Bears, wolves, deer, bats and other things like that." Larten commented as he stirred the stew in the pot.**

 **"Bears and wolves? Aren't they dangerous?" I asked nervously.**

 **"No, wolves like us and bears are OK as long as you respect their space." Larten answered confidently.**

 **"I am sure that you will keep me safe." I said smiling.**

 **"I will protect you, you are my dark angel and I love you." Larten declared.**

 **"Aww, Larten you are going soft in your old age." I heard a voice say from behind us.**

 **"Gavnur Purl what are you doing here?" Larten asked as Gavnur stepped out from behind me.**

 **"I am going to the council, I knew you'd be stopping here to check the cubs and sleep the day away so I thought I'd join you." Gavnur said as he sat down next to me, he kissed my hand and then my cheek. I was a bit taken aback by this but he always had been rather forward, he was far more flirtatious than Larten was. At one stage Gavnur put his arm around me but Larten didn't miss a trick.**

 **"Gavnur Purl remove your arm from around the waist of my mate." Larten said protectively.**

 **"I'm just being friendly Larten, you know I'd never do anything inappropriate." Gavnur remarked.**

 **"It's OK Larten, I don't mind." I said trying to diffuse the situation.**

 **"I mind." Larten said angrily.**

 **"Something smells good." Gavnur said as he tried to change the subject.**

 **"Venison stew is what you can smell and before you ask there is enough for you to have some." Larten said as he got three bowls out from his own small bag.**

 **Ladies first as always Gavnur." Larten said as he handed me my bowl of stew along with a wooden spoon and a fork to eat it with.**

 **"Thanks, it tastes great." I said as I tucked into my stew.**

 **"Here is yours Gavnur." Larten said as he handed Gavnur his bowlful of stew.**

 **"Cheers Larten my old pal." Gavnur said casually.**

 **"Are you following our route to the mountain?" Larten asked.**

 **"Hell no, I'm going my own way. I only came here to say hi to you two. I'm going to go and visit Liz before I go to the council anyway." Gavnur answered between mouthfuls of stew.**

 **"Who is Liz?" I asked.**

 **"Liz is a woman that I like, we spend time together as often as we can, she's a human but she's my mate." Gavnur told me as he finished his stew.**

 **"She's human? Is that permitted?" I asked.**

 **"I'm a General, the Clan won't do anything about it. We can't help who we fall in love with after all." Gavnur replied.**

 **"That is true." I concurred.**

 **"How is life with this old buzzard anyway?" Gavnur asked me.**

 **"We get along very well and my life couldn't be better actually." I replied with a smile.**

 **"As long as you're happy that's the only thing which counts." Gavnur concluded.**

 **"I'm very contented and well looked after, I have no complaints." I stated before I stood up and moved to sit next to Larten who I snuggled up to, he put his arm around me and we kissed briefly. One kiss was never enough for me and Larten knew this so he gave me another, longer kiss.**

 **"The sun is coming up." Gavnur said.**

 **"I know, come Anna let us return inside the barn." Larten instructed so we stood up and headed inside it.**

 **"Gavnur it was nice to see you again." I replied.**

 **"Likewise, I'll see you in the halls." Gavnur said before he vanished.**

 **"Now we can get some peace and quiet." I said as I lay down on our hay bale bed.**

 **"Yes, we can rest here safely. The fox cubs will be OK. They are old enough to find their den and go back to it." Larten remarked as he gave me his cloak to sleep under. I got myself comfortable and then Larten pulled me close to him, I curled up and he put his arms around me. I kissed him softly and he kissed me back with more passion. I settled down and went to sleep, I was tired and my feet hurt from all of the walking that I'd done. I had walked much further than a human could have managed, the vampire blood in my veins had given me stamina but I didn't have as much stamina as Larten.**

 **When I opened my eyes again I saw that the sky outside was grey and cloudy, I wasn't sure if it was going to rain or not but I didn't mind because I was snuggled up and warm inside a barn. I just hoped that the roof had no leaks in it. I shifted slightly but only to pull the cloak back over me. I was hungry but it was unwise to get up in the middle of the day, I was trying to be nocturnal but my biological clock was messed up. I kept waking up at random times of the day and sometimes I'd fall asleep at nighttime. I was meant to sleep from sunrise until sunset and be awake throughout the night. So here I was laying awake on my hay bale bed, Larten was asleep next to me. He was used to sleeping through the daytime but my body was still adjusting to the change. I had been a vampire for over two years now but because I worked at the Cirque Du Freak during the day it had messed up my nocturnal schedule. I often had trouble sleeping, when I couldn't sleep normally I'd get up and help the performers or the staff out, being here meant I couldn't do that so I just had to lie still and try my best not to disturb Larten. I didn't want to wake him up in the middle of the day, it'd make him grumpy.**

 **"What are you doing in my barn?" somebody said, I leapt up and pulled my dagger out instinctively.**

 **"I'm sorry, we were just sleeping here. We haven't caused any damage I assure you." I replied, then Larten woke up because he had heard me talking.**

 **"Anna, what is going on?" Larten asked me as he stood up and towered over the farmer.**

 **"The farmer wants to know why we're in his barn." I replied.**

 **"We were just sheltering from the daylight and the weather." Larten explained.**

 **"This is my barn, you are trespassing. Get out of here." the farmer told us angrily.**

 **"Larten I thought you said that you knew the farmer." I stated.**

 **"I do know the farmer, this is not the farmer that I made the deal with." Larten commented.**

 **"Hang on, what did you say your name was?" the farmer asked Larten.**

 **"I am Larten Crepsley and this is Anna, she is my mate." Larten declared.**

 **"I am so sorry, I didn't recognise you. It is my uncle that you know. He's away on business so I am taking care of the farm and the surrounding farm buildings." the farmer said.**

 **"Oh right, that makes sense." I said.**

 **"My uncle told me that he made an arrangement with a man who dresses all in red, he said that if you look after the foxes then you can stay here. We need the foxes to get rid of the other vermin like mice." the farmer explained.**

 **"Yes, it was I who your uncle spoke with and I fed the fox cubs last night. There are five of them and they are all healthy." Larten confirmed.**

 **"I'm sorry I woke you up, I thought you were travellers or gypsies to begin with. It wasn't until you stood up that I saw that you were dressed all in red just like my uncle said you would be." the farmer said apologetically.**

 **"It is alright, you have a right to protect your property. We shall be moving on as soon as the sun has set." Larten assured the farmer.**

 **"At least you aren't like those other folk we get in here sometimes. They're weird they are. They have purple skin, they must be in a biker gang or something. We don't like them at all." the farmer said.**

 **"When were they here last?" Larten asked seriously.**

 **"Two nights ago, they refused to leave until the sun had set too. They slaughtered a deer and left its remains outside, there were flies everywhere. The smell was awful." the farmer replied.**

 **"I am sorry for that, we have had problems with them too. They set our camp on fire and destroyed a very expensive circus tent along with a lot of our stage props and costumes." Larten told the farmer.**

 **"I called the police but by the time the police got here the gang had vanished. I couldn't work it out, they had no vehicles at all. They only left behind the carcass and a load of rubbish. I was not a happy man, now I do patrols to make sure that they don't come back. If they do come back then I'll set my dogs on them." the farmer said assertively.**

 **"Leave them to us, we know how to deal with gangs like this." Larten concluded.**

 **"But Larten I don't want to k..." I began but Larten held up his hand to silence me before I said too much.**

 **"I would be grateful for your help, I'm going to rig up an alarm system that links to the police, if anybody enters here in the future without entering the code the police will be notified. It is a silent alarm system." the farmer explained to us.**

 **"That'll show them, they are scum." I concurred.**

 **"Anna is right." Larten acknowledged.**

 **"Are the police good enough to deal with a gang like this?" I asked, then I looked at Larten and he knew what I meant.**

 **"Do not worry, we shall rid you of this gang once and for all." Larten announced.**

 **"How?" the farmer asked.**

 **"Leave it to us, I will strike a deal with them. They will not bother you again." Larten replied.**

 **"OK, I will leave it up to you. I'll still set up the alarm system though." the farmer said before he left us alone.**

 **"Damn those vampaneze, they cause trouble wherever they go." I said angrily.**

 **"Calm yourself Anna, we can deal with them now just like when we dealt with them before." Larten said as he drew his sword.**

 **"They are not likely to attack in daylight and they may not even come back here. Maybe they were just passing through." I suggested.**

 **"I hope so, I have an idea though. If they do come back here then they will not wish to stay if my idea works." Larten replied with a glint in his eyes.**

 **"What are you going to do?" I asked.**

 **"I am going to set up vampiric markers all around the land. The vampaneze will not cross borders if they think that vampires have claimed and dominate the area." Larten told me.**

 **"Are you sure about that? It hasn't stopped them before." I remarked.**

 **"The vampaneze are fragmented and their leader is weak, by now they will be aware of what happened to those who attacked us at the Cirque Du Freak. I do not believe that they are strong enough to attack a vampire dominated area." Larten explained.**

 **"But this area isn't dominated by vampires is it?" I asked.**

 **"No, it is not but they do not know that. We just have to make it seem like it is." Larten declared.**

 **"That's very clever." I commented.**

 **"I am known for my cunning as well as my good looks." Larten stated.**

 **"What is a vampiric marker?" I asked.**

 **"It is a stone that has three scratches on it, the scratches make a triangle shape. That is a universal symbol that every vampaneze will understand. The vampaneze have markers too, they mark stones with their symbol which is a circle with two lines running through it. Often when vampires are travelling to the council they will seek out vampaneze and fight them to the death, it is good training for them in case the council declares war on them. The more they kill in the wild the less they have to meet on the battlefield." Larten told me.**

 **"That makes a lot of sense. I hope that I won't have fight again for a long time. My arm still hasn't healed up properly." I commented.**

 **"Let me see it." Larten said as I held up my arm for him to look at. He removed the bandage, washed the paste off and then examined the wound. The wound was closed over but I still had a scab. Larten soaked it in hot water and much of the scab came off leaving behind a scar.**

 **"It looks fine to me." Larten said.**

 **"It still hurts, it may look fine on the outside but it isn't healed on the inside. That wound was deep, it cut through muscle." I replied.**

 **"Muscle will take a while to form yes but the skin has healed up well and it is free from infection." Larten commented.**

 **"Well that is something. It was a stupid mistake on my part, I left myself open and that was the price I paid. I must learn to block better or next time I may not be so lucky to escape with just a flesh wound." I replied.**

 **"I hope that you never have to fight again, I take no pleasure in killing vampaneze, I do it because I have to not because I want to." Larten stated as he finished bathing my arm.**

 **"I understand completely, war is horrible and battles should always be avoided if there is a diplomatic solution." I concluded.**

 **"I agree, I hope that I will not have to use my weapons for a long time if at all." Larten said.**

 **"I think the sun is beginning to set, you can go and leave those marker stones by all the entrances to this land, hopefully it'll work and the vampaneze will avoid this area in the future." I stated.**

 **"If it fails to work then I shall slaughter all who I come across." Larten told me.**

 **"Do you need me to help you?" I asked.**

 **"No, stay here and put the hay bales back where they were. We are moving on soon. I have decided to avoid a conflict if it is possible." Larten declared.**

 **"I think that is best, I have no desire to get caught up in another all out scrap between us and them." I admitted.**

 **"We have a lot of ground to cover and I want to make it to the mountain in time for the first council meeting, if we meet any vampaneze on the way then we will kill them. I do not however wish to stay here and lie in wait for them if like you say they are just passing through and have already moved on." Larten declared as I moved the hay bales back to where we had got them from.**

 **Larten vanished in a blur, I didn't know how long it'd take him to set the stones up. He could move very fast but I had no idea how many acres of land there were on this farm. Larten needed to leave stones on every piece of land that was attached to this farm and its buildings. I sat down on a hay bale and I waited for him.**

 **I saw Madam Octa's cage nearby to where I was sitting, she hadn't been fed so I cut some venison up into tiny chunks for her. I had to play the flute to tell her that I was about to feed her but I was hopeless at it. I just couldn't play and think about what I was trying to tell her at the same time, in the end I dropped the venison pieces through the tiny gaps between the bars of her wooden cage. That was safer than opening the cage, I couldn't take any chances. I watched Madam Octa scuttling around picking up the pieces and eating them one at a time, then she looked straight at me. I wasn't sure if she wanted more food or if she was trying to thank me for her meal.**

 **I went outside and dug around underneath the snow, the ground was hard but I managed to turn the soil up a little bit. I was looking for a worm, Madam Octa loved worms and she loved pizza too but I didn't have any of that to give to her. I found a nice, long, fat worm. I picked it up and took it into the barn. I dangled it over the cage, it was wiggling and I could have sworn that Madam Octa's eyes widened when she saw it. I dropped it into the cage and Madam Octa practically jumped to get to it, I watched her eating it. It was gone within a couple of minutes.**

 **Larten came back into the barn. I was still sitting on the hay bale with the cage next to me and the flute in my hand.**

 **"I have set up the stones, pass me the flute Anna." Larten said so I handed him the flute.**

 **"Open the cage, she needs to exercise." Larten instructed me so I unlocked the cage and I opened its door.**

 **Larten began to play the flute and Madam Octa came out of her cage, she walked around for a bit and then she scurried up my back and she stopped to sit on my shoulder. I knew better than to move so I froze, Madam Octa climbed back down my arm and onto the floor. Larten stopped playing the flute for a moment.**

 **"I have told her to stretch her legs and return to her cage when I play the flute again." Larten said.**

 **"Will she obey you?" I asked.**

 **"I am sure that she will, I have something for her when she returns to the cage." Larten replied.**

 **"I had just finished feeding her when you came back, she had some leftover venison and a worm that I dug up." I said.**

 **"I have a live cricket for her, she likes those." Larten stated.**

 **"She loves worms, that one I gave her was gone within a couple of minutes." I told Larten.**

 **"Darren did tell me that she enjoys worms and pizza too. Of course I do not encourage feeding her human food." Larten declared.**

 **"I don't think it is good for her, worms are fine but not pizza." I agreed.**

 **"Can you see her?" Larten asked.**

 **"No, where has she gone?" I asked in reply.**

 **"She is up there on the ceiling, that is where she will find moths and other tasty snacks." Larten answered me.**

 **"How long do you let her out for normally?" I asked.**

 **"A few minutes so she can hunt and stretch her legs. We have to be moving on soon so I shall send her back to her cage now." Larten said before he once again blew the flute and then I watched as Madam Octa scurried down from the ceiling, she crawled down a long beam and then she clambered back up the hay bale and into her cage. I shut the door and locked it again, Larten stopped playing the flute and he gave the live cricket to Madam Octa, she wrestled with it for a few minutes before tucking into it.**

 **"We should be moving on now. Have you packed up the pots?" Larten asked.**

 **"They need a wash but the tap is frozen, there is no water to wash them in." I said.**

 **"Damn the cold weather, I saw a river earlier and it is not frozen because the water is running too fast for it to freeze. The water looks clear so all you have to do is fill up that large pot and heat it over the fire, then use that to wash the pots in." Larten told me.**

 **"Where is the river?" I asked.**

 **"It is about ten minutes away if you walk it at human speed." Larten replied.**

 **"OK I'll be back in a minute, I'll just go and get some water." I remarked before I left to locate the river. I found the river and the water was flowing very fast, I knelt down to fill up the pot as that was the only way to do it. I placed the pot into the water and it filled up, it was a large pot that could hold about two litres of water. I waited until it was almost full before I removed the pot from the water and put the lid on it. I was about to go back to the barn when I felt something push me hard from behind, I dropped the pot, lost my balance and fell straight into the fast flowing water!**

 **I was swept away down the river faster than I could imagine, the shock of the icy cold water hit me like a knife. I wanted to scream for help but I couldn't breathe, the water was too cold and the current was too fast. I kicked furiously to try and stay afloat, I knew if my head went under the water then I'd most likely drown. I never had been a strong swimmer, I had meant to learn but I hadn't got around to it yet. I tried to stay calm and let the river carry me away, I knew that if I could just stay afloat long enough then the current would slow down and I'd be able to get across to the riverbank. I was looking out for a tree or something I could grab onto, my fingers were numb, my body was numb and my brain went blank...**

 **I knew that if a vampire died in running water their soul would never reach Paradise, it would be forever trapped in the water or so we believed. As I was being swept away I saw something getting nearer to me, I was too cold and confused to work out what it was. It grabbed hold of me and pulled me to the riverbank, I screamed at the top of my lungs. I was screaming for help and out of fear, whatever had grabbed me out of the water was trying to pull me onto the dry land. I was too weak to fight it, I just let it tug me onto the land where I lay down and collapsed in a coughing fit. I was coughing up all the icy water that I'd swallowed.**

 **I must have been there for a while, I was freezing cold and disorientated. I could feel something warm next to me, in fact there were two warm things laying beside me. I opened my eyes a little bit and then I saw what they were, they were wolves. I couldn't move, I was so exhausted. The wolves nuzzled me and lay down next to me, they were really close to me and then I realised that they were trying to warm me up. I snuggled into them as closely as I could. More wolves came and lay on top of me and around me, each one was sharing its heat with me. I was alive, the wolves had saved my life.**

 **I stayed still, I let the wolves nuzzle me and tug at my clothing. They were trying to help me, then a big wolf with swollen teats came over to me. She must be the alpha female I thought to myself, she nuzzled me and she sniffed me. She lay down next to me, her milk-filled teats were by my lips. I instinctively drank some of her milk, the others were still lying over my body and licking me.**

 **Larten had told me how wolves were friendly with vampires. We shared a link in our ancestry or something. I continued to drink from the mother wolf until she pulled away from me.**

 **"Go get Larten." I whispered weakly to one of the wolves. The wolf stood up, sniffed my clothing, howled and ran off. I lay there with the others, I took my wet clothes off when I could move again, the mother wolf helped by tugging at it and then she lay beside me. Two of the other wolves leapt up and started growling fiercely, I was too weak to pay much attention to them, then the mother wolf leapt up and growled too. She stood over me as if she was saying;**

 **"Stay away from my cub." I looked up to see a bear, it was large and black. It looked vicious. I stayed down on the ground, the wolves continued to growl and snarl with their fangs bared until the bear turned away and walked back in the direction it had appeared from. I was safe for the moment, the mother wolf lay back down beside me and she let me suck some more milk from her, it was as though she knew that I needed it.**

 **I heard a wolf howling and then I looked up, it was the same one that had sniffed my clothing and ran off earlier. Moments later Larten was by my side and then the wolves were howling and going crazy.**

 **"Anna, what the hell happened?" Larten asked me, he looked really concerned.**

 **"I got the water." I murmured weakly.**

 **"Yes and then what happened?" Larten asked. It took me a moment to register his words, I was still dazed.**

 **"I was pushed into the river, I was swept away by it. The wolves came to my aid. There was a bear but the wolves snarled at it and it went away." I managed to say when I could think again.**

 **"I knew something was wrong, you did not return and then a wolf came into the barn and howled at me, it was tugging my cloak until I stood up and then it ran. I followed it and I found you." Larten replied as he covered my body with his cloak, I was still wet and cold.**

 **"The wolf, it saved me." I muttered again, I was drifting in and out of contiousness.**

 **Larten wrapped me in his cloak and he scooped me up into his arms, he carried me back to the barn and the wolves followed him. He placed me onto the hay bales and got some of my warm, dry clothes out of my backpack. He dressed me and then he left me to rest. The wolves lay down beside me and I snuggled into them for added warmth. I must have fallen asleep, when I awoke the wolves were still laying beside me.**

 **The mother wolf jumped up onto the hay bales and one of the younger wolves jumped off to give her some space. She once again nuzzled me and licked me, I was able to move slightly until I could reach her milk, I drunk some of it and then I drunk some more. She rested her large head on my body and the other wolves all lay down on the floor by the hay bales except for those who were keeping me warm.**

 **I must have slept for several hours, when I opened my eyes and moved I could see the wolves all around me. I sat up slowly, I still felt weak but the mother wolf's milk had given me a life saving boost, without it I would have died from the cold. The mother wolf still had her head on my lap, the others were right up against me. I didn't know where Larten was.**

 **"Larten, where are you?" I called out, I was still weak.**

 **"I am here, I am cooking us something to eat. How are you feeling now?" Larten asked me.**

 **"I feel weak but at least I am warm. The wolves are still here." I called back.**

 **"They will not leave you, you are one of them. The alpha female has accepted you, as far as they know you are a wolf." Larten told me as he handed me a bowlful of hot soup.**

 **"Eat that and then you will feel better. It is soup made from vegetables and the leftover meat." Larten said.**

 **"Thank you." I said weakly as I slowly started to eat it. A few minutes later Larten came back into the barn carrying another small deer, he placed it on the ground. The wolves leapt up and sniffed it, the mother wolf got up too. She ate first as the alpha and then all the others started eating. Soon there was nothing left, they devoured the whole thing. I finished my soup and then I had a drink, Larten gave me his flask that had been topped up with fresh blood, I drained it and handed the empty flask back to Larten.**

 **"I needed that." I said.**

 **"I know, you are luck** **y to be alive. The wolves must have seen whoever pushed you in, they followed the river and dragged you out of the water as soon as they could. They are highly intelligent creatures." Larten told me.**

 **"I don't doubt it, if I were a human I'd be dead right now." I replied.**

 **"The wolves do not like humans, humans hunt and shoot them for their skins. We do not harm them, we feed them and we live in unity with them. There will be plenty of wolves at the mountain for you to meet." Larten remarked.**

 **"I owe them my life, how can I repay my debt?" I asked.**

 **"The deer I gave them is payment enough." Larten stated.**

 **The wolves refused to leave my side, whenever I moved or stood up they followed me like dogs would. I threw them some scraps, we still had some spit roasted venison left from the night before when we had first come to the barn. It was mostly bones now but they didn't care, I gave the biggest bone to the mother wolf as she had shared her milk with me, she stayed beside me as she ate it, her strong jaws made short work of the bone and she crunched it up as if it were a biscuit.**

 **One of the younger wolves, a male ran outside of the barn. I wasn't sure why but about twenty minutes to half an hour later he returned to the barn with a rabbit between his jaws. He dropped it at Larten's feet and sat down. Larten picked up the rabbit, skinned it, gutted it and spit roasted it. He gave the skin and the bones to the wolves, they ate the heart and other innards too. He ate the rabbit, it was tiny and there was hardly any meat on it.**

 **"That was a tasty snack." Larten said as he threw his last bone to the floor for the wolves.**

 **"I'm sure it was, it looked nice but it was so tiny. I'm sorry that I have delayed our travel. We should have left here a long time ago." I replied.**

 **"It could not be helped, nobody can predict when something like this is going to happen." Larten stated.**

 **"I think it was a vampaneze who pushed me into the river." I claimed.**

 **"I agree, no vampire would do that unless they were a traitor and I very much doubt that a human would do that to you either." Larten acknowledged.**

 **"What do I do?" I asked.**

 **"Stay close to me and keep your wits sharp." Larten answered.**

 **"I'll be more careful in the future." I concluded.**

 **"Your wet clothing has dried out now, I have folded it up and put it back into your backpack." Larten informed me.**

 **"I'm glad that I packed my extra clothing now." I replied.**

 **"Yes, it was a good judgement call." Larten agreed.**

 **"When will we move on from here?" I asked.**

 **"Providing that there are no more incidents we shall move on at sunset. We are at least a day behind schedule and we cannot afford to waste any more time here." Larten remarked.**

 **"I agree, we need to get out of here and if we meet any vampaneze we can kill them can't we?" I asked.**

 **"Yes, we have grounds to kill them because they attempted to kill you. It would be seen as justice by the clan if we were to kill them." Larten explained.**

 **"As long as the truce isn't broken by us then we are in the clear, they've broken the truce and now they can suffer the consequences." I clarified.**

 **"I agree, we will not seek them out but if we run into them then we shall fight them, I was inclined not to fight them but now that they have attempted to murder you my actions will be justified." Larten concluded.**

 **Just then the mother wolf leapt up and started snarling at something, the other wolves got up also and they were all growling and barking.**

 **"What is it?" I asked the mother wolf, she stood infront of me and snarled even louder.**

 **"Show me." I said to another wolf but the mother wolf wouldn't let me move, she nudged Larten with her paw until he got up to investigate. The mother wolf remained infront of me, the other wolves stood by her too on either side of her. It was as if they were forming a protective wall around me.**

 **"You foul, pitiful waste of breath!" I heard Larten shout before I heard swords clashing and then I saw what was going on, the vampaneze had come back to the barn and they were fighting with Larten. Larten dispatched two of them in quick succession but the other three were proving tricky, two of the wolves leapt forward and started snapping and snarling at the vampaneze, the mother wolf remained infront of me like a guard dog. She was snarling and growling at them non stop. The wolves were no cowards, they were attacking the vampaneze and Larten was attacking them too, he killed another one and then the other two ran but the wolves chased after them, from the sounds of their screams the wolves had caught them and ripped them to pieces.**

 **The wolves came back into the barn and one was limping, the other one was covered in blood but it wasn't wolf blood it was vampaneze blood.**

 **"I think that is the last we shall be seeing of them for a while, they are tenacious I'll give them that." I said as I washed the deadly vampaneze blood off of the young male wolf whilst Larten put a splint on the leg of the other one.**

 **"Are you OK?" I asked the young male. He whined a bit and nuzzled me, I stroked him and then he lay down beside my feet. The mother wolf licked my ears and face, she then nudged me so I moved, she lay down and then I lay down too, her teats were exposed so I bent down to drink from her which she let me do. The youngest wolf also had a drink, she drunk from the teat next to the one that I had been suckling from. The mother wolf then got up and once again rested her head on my lap whilst I sat on the hay bale.**

 **"What are we going to do with the bodies?" I asked.**

 **"I shall build up the fire and burn them, that way animals will not eat them and turn mad from consuming their blood." Larten commented.**

 **"They attacked in daylight, they are either desperate or stupid. I do not know of any vampires who attack in broad daylight." I replied.**

 **"The vampaneze have no leader, they are fragmented and their numbers are dwindling. If we keep killing them then soon there will not be any left." Larten concluded.**

 **"So much for Sarah being their leader. What on Earth is she playing at? She sends them out to attack us at every opportunity she gets and we keep on killing those who attack us. It is almost as if she wants us dead and she doesn't care about anything else." I remarked.**

 **"Sarah is a weak leader, when she is dead hopefully the vampaneze will go back to the sewers where they belong and leave our clan alone." Larten answered.**

 **"That is if we don't slaughter them all first, we've killed about ten or twelve recently between us, the wolves have killed two, Gavnur killed two or three and the Wolf Man has killed two also." I concluded as I tried to add up exactly how many we had killed.**

 **"That is a lot, normally on the battlefield you may only kill one or two and injure several others but these vampaneze are dropping like flies, either they have had no combat training, they are only vampets or they are just weak as a whole." Larten stated as he cleaned the blood off of his sword once again.**

 **"I have no idea but I want to get out of here and continue our journey to the mountain." I said.**

 **"Me too, we will have to report this to the council. It is not normal for vampaneze to act like this, the clan needs to be aware of it." Larten declared.**

 **"The quicker we get to the mountain the quicker you can dissolve your blessed mateship too." I remarked.**

 **"That is also true." Larten agreed.**

 **"I hope that you can get it sorted out, I do not like this limbo that I am in." I admitted.**

 **"What do you mean?" Larten asked me.**

 **"Whilst your current blessed mateship is still recognised even if you are now seperated our mateship doesn't count, it is not formal and it is not solid. Our union is not recognised." I explained.**

 **"When I present you to the clan I will introduce you as my mate, the clan will have to accept it. It is not up to them it is up to me who I chose to share my life and my coffin with." Larten replied.**

 **"If you introduced me to the clan as your mate then wouldn't it cause problems with your now ex blessed mate?" I asked.**

 **"She would not like it but she will have to accept that her union with me is over, she has a new mate anyway so it should not bother her." Larten reiterated.**

 **"I was just asking, I don't want to cause any fights between clan members over this." I clarified.**

 **"It is fine, I will sort it. Please do not dwell upon it, I love you and that is all you need to know." Larten told me, he sat next to me on the hay bale, he kissed me deeply and he held me in his arms for a long time to reassure me that it was I whom he loved and no other. I kissed Larten back with just as much passion, I wanted to feel his warm body next to mine.**

 **Eventually the sunset came and it was time for us to leave the barn, Larten had washed all of the pots and put them away in his backpack, they were special ones that folded up really small.**

 **"Are you ready to leave?" Larten asked me as I stood up and brushed the hay off of my clothes.**

 **"Yes, I am ready when you are." I answered.**

 **"Then let us go, like I have already said we have a lot of ground to cover and we are behind schedule." Larten remarked as we walked out of the barn and to the gate that led to the road.**

 **The wolves followed us as far as the gate but no further, they knew that the road wasn't safe for them. It was too near humans. I stroked them all and I sat down with them, they all bundled me and licked my face, the mother wolf nudged me and nuzzled me before she lay down on her side. The younger wolf suckled but I had no need to so I didn't. The younger wolf needed the milk more than I did anyway.**

 **"Bye, I'll see you again someday." I said to the wolves as I stood up again and walked through the gate. They all howled so I howled back at them, I took Larten's hand and we began walking along the road and onto the next part of our journey...**


	15. Chapter 14

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 14:**

 **We travelled throughout the night, we walked as quickly as we could to cover lots of ground. We were more than a day behind schedule and we had to catch up, lots of vampires had already arrived at the mountain. We were determined to make it there before the first council meeting was held. Luckily for us the Festival of the Undead would not begin until every vampire had reached the mountain, that was the rule.**

 **We jogged quite a lot too, we could cover roughly sixty miles in one evening and that was a lot of miles to jog but our vampiric stamina helped us. A human can walk maybe twenty miles in a day or a human who trains for marathons can run twenty six miles in a couple of hours. I had no idea how many miles it was to vampire mountain but our journey never seemed to end, at least the weather was improving. The snow was melting and it was getting warmer at night.**

 **We started to walk a couple of hours before sunset because it gave us two extra hours of walking time, after that we started walking for a couple of hours past sunrise too, we were determined to cover as much distance as we could.**

 **We stopped walking when the sunlight was too strong or if we were too tired to continue. We ate a lot of meat and high carbohydrate foods to keep our energy levels up. We used a lot of energy when we were walking, I understood why I had been told to leave my suitcase and just bring a backpack. We walked through fields and countryside mainly, we kept off of the roads and we avoided towns and cities. We hunted and we slept in the woods or Larten would build us a shelter to sleep in. Sometimes if the weather was really bad we'd sleep in an abandoned house or a flat, we didn't want to sleep outside in a thunderstorm when lightning was flashing.**

 **"I'm really tired, can we have a rest?" I asked Larten.**

 **"If we keep going then we will be over the halfway point of our journey. We have another five miles to go before we are halfway to the mountain." Larten replied.**

 **"Oh OK, I can keep going for a little bit longer. I am hungry and thirsty though." I remarked.**

 **"Here, take this my love." Larten said as he handed me his flask.**

 **"Thank you." I remarked as I drank from the flask, it was filled up with fresh spring water and it refreshed me.**

 **"Do you have any food?" I asked.**

 **"No, I do not have anything. I have no way to keep it fresh." Larten told me.**

 **"I haven't eaten for ages, you can go longer than I can without food." I complained.**

 **"You ate when I did, just keep going. There is food in the next field that you can eat." Larten confirmed.**

 **"What is it?" I asked.**

 **"There are some fruit trees and a hedgerow, we can raid it for nuts and berries." Larten concluded.**

 **"That sounds good, what fruit trees are in the field?" I asked.**

 **"There are apple trees and a peach tree too. The peaches are really juicy." Larten stated.**

 **"I'll look forward to eating one of them then, I haven't had much fruit recently, just meat and that high carbohydrate stuff you found." I said.**

 **"Look, you can see the trees now. They are filled with fruit." Larten responded.**

 **"That is good, I'm starving." I acknowledged.**

 **"Why are you always hungry?" Larten asked.**

 **"I'm half human, I'm doing lots of exercise and walking for hours at a time and when we do stop to eat I don't get much. You eat loads." I answered honestly.**

 **"If you want more food then ask for it, I do not mind stopping for longer and giving you a bigger portion of whatever I catch if you need it." Larten commented.**

 **"I didn't want to take too much because then you'd be missing out." I remarked truthfully.**

 **"I can manage, if you want more food then I will give you more food." Larten replied.**

 **We reached the fruit trees and Larten climbed up one of them, he threw me down a peach which I bit into, it was really juicy and refreshing. I ate the whole thing minus the stone within a couple of minutes. I wiped my mouth afterwards as I had peach juice all around it. I headed over to the hedgerow that surrounded the field which we were in, I inspected it and I found some nuts. They were on a tree that was on the opposite side of the hedge but some of the branches hung low enough for me to reach up and grab a handful. Larten shook the tree and loads of nuts came falling to the ground, we ate as many as we could spot.**

 **"Are you feeling better now?" Larten asked.**

 **"A little bit but I'm still hungry." I replied.**

 **"I suppose that I will have to go and find you something meaty to eat then." Larten said.**

 **"We can take some nuts with us, in their shells they'll keep for ages if they're kept dry." I said as I filled up the space in my backpack with nuts, I think that they were hazelnuts or similar, they were small and sweet as nuts go.**

 **"That is true, take as many nuts as you can carry. I will go and hunt, however I will light the fire first because it takes a while to get going." Larten stated.**

 **"I will sit by the fire once it has been lit and then I shall wait for you to rustle up something tasty." I commented.**

 **"I think we will have duck tonight, I saw some wild ducks earlier or would you prefer a goose?" Larten asked me.**

 **"Oh definately a goose, that will provide us with two good meals. Duck is very fatty as meat goes and they're small." I replied.**

 **"A goose it is then my dear." Larten acknowledged before he got some wood and started a fire. I saw him vanish and then when he reappeared he was holding a goose, it was dead. It had its throat slit, Larten plucked it and gutted it with skill, he cut the legs off and disposed of the head and the neck. Larten stuffed the bird with herbs, nuts and berries as well as a good quantity of vegetables that we had taken from neighbouring fields and then he put it into the roasting tray over the fire. He covered the legs in herbs and he cooked those in the stew pot with some stock. They didn't fit in the roasting tray and they weren't going to be wasted.**

 **I could smell the goose cooking, it reminded me of Christmas. The herbs and the vegetables would infuse with the meat and that would give it a much richer flavour, it took a couple of hours to roast. The stewed legs were ready before that so we ate those as a starter before the main course was ready. I couldn't wait to tuck into the goose, the smell was amazing, if you've ever smelt a freshly roasted goose then you'll know what I'm talking about.**

 **Larten removed the tray from the fire, I could see the steam rising off of it when Larten removed the cover from the tray. It was a specially designed roasting tray that folded up small and it was easy to clean too. The cover would slide across the top of the tray to close it and then it would slide open again. Larten took out his knife, it was a hunting knife that had an edge like a carving knife. Larten carefully cut the breast meat off of the bone, he put it on a plate along with some of the stuffing and he gave it to me. He dished up his own food and then we ate together. I had never tasted anything so wonderful, I'd add this to my list of favourite dishes. I cleared my plate really quickly and then I had some more. The goose was big enough to feed both of us a decent meal each.**

 **"May I have a drink please?" I asked.**

 **"Yes, I have spring water left or I have some blood. Which do you want?" Larten asked.**

 **"Water please, I had blood earlier." I answered.**

 **Larten handed over his flask of spring water, I drunk half of what was left and handed it back to him.**

 **"Are you still hungry or was the goose enough for you?" Larten asked me.**

 **"I'm full up now thank you, that was just what I needed." I replied.**

 **"Well then we can move on, there are still four hours of good walking time left." Larten said as he washed out the now empty roasting tray and the stew pot. The only thing we didn't eat was the goose carcass, we ate every strip of meat that was on that bird, it filled a large hole and I felt satisfied. I wouldn't be hungry again for quite a while. This meant that we could walk without stopping and make the most of the hours we had before the sun came up again.**

 **"Are you ready to leave?" Larten asked.**

 **"Yes, I've filled my backpack up with nuts. I think you should refill your water flask, it is almost empty." I answered.**

 **"I will fill it up when we reach the next fresh water stream, some streams are not safe to drink out of because of chemical pollution from farms and the like." Larten replied.**

 **"I always boil water from streams and rivers anyway just in case. Boiling usually neutralises most harmful substances and bacteria." I remarked.**

 **"That is a wise choice, even vampires can be poisoned. It takes a lot to make us ill but we are not immortal." Larten said wisely.**

 **"I learnt a bit about survival and bushcraft skills when I was in the girl guides as a teenager, you don't forget important information that could save your life." I informed Larten.**

 **"They did not have girl guides or scouts when I was a boy, I was working from the age of twelve in a factory. It was absolute hell in there but I got out and Seba saved me. Seba took me under his wing and he taught me many things, I would not be who I am now if not for his guidance." Larten stated.**

 **"I agree, having a good mentor is the foundation for becoming a vampire of good standing within the clan." I acknowledged.**

 **"It is clear to me that you are intelligent, I have no doubt in my mind that you will be an asset to our clan." Larten concluded.**

 **"I hope so, I do my best to be a good vampiress." I declared.**

 **"I know you do your best and with me as a mentor you will be fine." Larten confirmed.**

 **"You are my mate, you are not only my mentor." I added.**

 **"Yes, I am your mate and I have absolutely no intention of altering that fact." Larten told me.**

 **"I am glad to hear that, it makes me happy to hear these words." I said as I interlinked my fingers with Larten's, then we walked hand in hand through the fields until we came to a wood. This was where we would rest for the day. The tall trees blocked out the sunlight and we found a flat patch of ground where we could build a shelter to sleep in. We had a plastic sheet that we placed on the ground because the ground was wet and a bit muddy. We would lie on the sheet and have the shelter over the top of us, it had sides and a roof. It was big enough for us to lie in without being squashed although we would usually snuggle into each other for warmth and safety.**

 **I sat on a wooden stile whilst I waited for Larten to find materials and build us a shelter, I decided to go and find some twigs that we could use for kindling so that we could cook supper. The goose had filled us up nicely but after four hours of walking I was getting pretty hungry. I opened my backpack and started to munch on some of the nuts that I had carried with me, I had filled up my backpack with as many nuts as I could get in there. I had also brought with me three big peaches and an apple.**

 **"What have we got for supper?" I asked Larten when he had completed building our shelter.**

 **"Wood pidgeon casserole with partridge and rabbit." Larten announced as he produced a brace of game birds and a rabbit out of thin air with a click of his fingers. He was really good with illusions.**

 **"How on Earth did you do that?" I asked in amazement.**

 **"It is called skill and I did tell you that I am good with illusions." Larten replied with a smile as he prepared the birds and the rabbit ready to put into the casserole dish. The fire was blazing and Larten found us two big logs that we up-ended and used like stools. I sat on my stool and ate some more nuts whilst I waited for the casserole to cook through.**

 **"Where are you going?" I asked Larten when he stood up and started walking.**

 **"I am just going to fill up the water flask, there is a stream close by, can you hear it?" Larten answered.**

 **"Yes, I thought I heard water gushing or flowing earlier." I replied.**

 **"I will not be long, pour some wine over the meat and use it to make a stock." Larten instructed.**

 **"Wine? We have wine now?" I asked bemused.**

 **"I have some in my other flask, it is only good for cooking. It is not nice enough to drink." Larten said before he once again vanished and went deeper into the gloomy wood.**

 **I did as Larten had instructed and poured the wine from his other flask straight over the cooking meat, it smelt really nice and I was looking forward to eating it. I could hear the stock bubbling away in the casserole dish, the alcohol was being cooked out whilst all the flavours of the stock remained.**

 **"Is the casserole cooking nicely?" Larten asked when he returned from filling up his flask with fresh water.**

 **"I think it is cooking through yes, I poured the wine over the meat like you told me to." I replied.**

 **"It should be ready to eat soon, I am just waiting for the meat to be thoroughly cooked and the alcohol to evaporate." Larten concluded.**

 **"It smells good, I can't wait to eat it." I remarked.**

 **"I told you that I would always make sure that you would never go hungry or want for anything." Larten responded as he stirred the stock and basted the meat in it.**

 **"You are very attentive and I have no complaints, you take good care of me." I acknowledged.**

 **"I love you. As I am both your mate and your mentor you are my responsibility. I will not allow anything bad to happen to you." Larten assured me.**

 **"So far I have been stabbed, I've had my arm sliced open and I've nearly drowned in a river." I reiterated.**

 **"I tended to your wound, I also warmed you up and fed you when you were too weak to move after you were dragged out of the river, in addition to that I killed the vampaneze who dared to look at you when I was tracking them in the tunnels." Larten reminded me.**

 **"You've done a lot for me and you saved my life as well. I am very grateful for everything you've done for me." I replied and I made sure to thank Larten for all of his kindness.**

 **Larten got the bowls out and he passed me one of them.**

 **"Is it ready to eat?" I asked.**

 **"In a few moments, the meat is just absorbing the stock so that it will be tender and juicy." Larten responded.**

 **"I've never eaten as well as what I have been eating since I've been travelling with you." I said happily.**

 **"Pass me your bowl Anna." Larten instructed me so I handed it to him and he filled it up with casserole before he handed it back to me.**

 **"Can Madam Octa have some of this?" I asked as I finished my meal.**

 **"I will give her a piece of the partridge meat. She only has a small stomach." Larten replied as he too finished eating. I took a peach out from my backpack and I bit into it, the juice ran into my mouth and it was so sweet. The peach was my dessert because I hadn't passed any shops where I could buy a ready made pudding. The peach was healthier than some manufactured, ready-to-eat pudding anyway. I never ate much fruit as a human but as a vampiress I ate lots more of it, food can be hard to find so when you come across a fruit tree it makes sense to eat what it provides.**

 **After the peach had been eaten and I had disgarded the stone I rinsed my hands off because they were really sticky and covered in peach juice. I was full up and ready for bed, I needed to sleep. I was still recovering from going in the river, it had been a very traumatic experience for me and if not for the wolves I would be dead.**

 **I went into the shelter and made myself comfortable, the ground was hard and it wasn't pleasant to sleep on at all but when I was snuggled into Larten and I was using his cloak as a blanket it wasn't so bad. I rested my head on his chest, he had his arm around me and I tried to be as close to him as I could.**

 **We settled down in the shelter, I was glad that we were over halfway to the mountain. When we were climbing the mountain itself there were rest stations along the way, they contained coffins which we could sleep in.**

 **"Slep well my beloved." I said before I kissed Larten and pulled myself closer to him, I was stretched out across his body with the cloak over me. He didn't mind at all, when we were in his coffin he'd turn and wrap his arms around me in a protective embrace.**

 **"Shh, keep quiet back there you don't want to disturb them do you?" an unfamaliar voice called out. I was awake but my eyes were closed, somebody was outside our shelter. I leapt up, drew my dagger and went outside to see who was outside our shelter.**

 **"Who are you?" I demanded to know, my dagger was glinting in the firelight.**

 **"I am Prince Vancha and that is Prince Arrow." Prince Vancha replied.**

 **"Can I help you sir?" I asked.**

 **"May we use your fire to cook our meal on?" Prince Vancha asked me.**

 **"Sure, if you'll excuse me I'm going to bed. The sun is up and its rays hurt my skin." I told the mysterious Prince Vancha.**

 **"The sun hurts us too, we will be taking shelter from it also after we've cooked our fish." Prince Arrow added.**

 **"I'm Anna, my mate Larten is asleep in there. He gets grumpy if somebody wakes him up without cause." I remarked.**

 **"Larten Crepsley is in there? Did I hear you right?" Prince Vancha asked me.**

 **"Yes, you heard me correctly." I reiterated.**

 **"Well well I never thought Larten would be travelling this way, he normally goes North when he goes to the mountain." Prince Arrow responded.**

 **"You're going to the mountain too?" I asked.**

 **"Yes, we live there. Forgive me Anna for asking you this, are you a vampiress?" Prince Vancha asked me.**

 **"I am a half blooded vampiress, Larten is my mentor and my mate." I confirmed.**

 **"It is nice to meet you Anna. Prince Arrow and myself are two of the Vampire Princes. Larten is highly respected within our clan." Prince Vancha revealed.**

 **"Sires, I had no idea. I did not recognise either of you." I admitted.**

 **"It is quite alright, how would you recognise those whom you haven't met before?" Prince Arrow asked.**

 **"I wouldn't, I didn't, I meant no disrespect." I said quickly as I put my dagger in its sheathe.**

 **"We will not be staying long, we will eat our fish and depart for the mountain." Prince Vancha told me.**

 **"I'm going back to sleep, good day Sire." I said politely as I returned to the shelter where Larten was still asleep which came as a surprise. I lay down and snuggled into him again, I felt warmer as it was cold and breezy outside. The fire provided us with additional heat. I could hear the two Vampire Princes talking and eating their fish so I left them to it, I closed my eyes and fell asleep.**

 **When I woke up Larten was already awake and waiting to move on but something was troubling him.**

 **"I washed these pots but somebody has used them again. Anna it was not you was it?" Larten asked me, he was puzzled.**

 **"No Larten I did not use them, Prince Vancha and Prince Arrow did. They cooked a fish using our fire whilst you were asleep, I saw them and I spoke with them too." I explained.**

 **"The Princes were here?" Larten asked.**

 **"Yes, they were here but they have gone to the mountain now. They said they weren't stopping because of the sunlight." I revealed.**

 **"We shall meet them again at the mountain, come Anna we should get going. We still have a reasonable distance to cover." Larten remarked as he washed the pots out for a second time and packed them away. He stood up, took my hand and he began to lead me through the woods and onto the very base of the mountain. The woods covered a much bigger area than I expected, the moon was full and I could see it. It looked like a big greyish-white disc. The stars were shining too and I saw a couple of the planets. I hadn't walked through a clear night for a while, normally it was cloudy or snowing. The closer to the mountain we got the harder it snowed, it was lucky that I had my snow boots on and I was wearing a thermal shirt underneath my other clothing. I knew that I'd have to go barefoot soon but not for the moment.**

 **When we exited the woods I saw that the ground had changed, it wasn't fields now it was like a narrow path with thorn bushes on each side of it. The ground was now rocky and uneven, the snow was falling hard and it was sticking too. I felt a remarkable change in temperature, one one side of the woods it was like farmland and the other side of the woods it was on an incline. Was this the foot of vampire mountain?**

 **"We are getting closer to the mountain now, soon you will have to disgard your boots and walk barefoot but I shall tell you when that is." Larten said as he led me along the path with the thorny bushes either side of it. We were walking uphill over very hard, snow covered ground. The snow was getting thicker and the wind sent a chill to my bones, even my thermal shirt didn't help much.**

 **We continued along the narrow path and the further we walked the thicker the thorn bushes got, eventually the path had been almost sealed off by the thorny bushes.**

 **"We can't walk through these thorny bushes, we have to find another way around." I said.**

 **"If we leave the path we will lose time, this is a shortcut to the base of the mountain. We are in the foothills now, if we keep going this way we will reach the mountain by dawn tomorrow. As soon as we are at the boundary line where this rocky ground ends and the top of the mountain comes into view we will remove our footwear." Larten told me.**

 **"Very well, we'll have to jump over the bushes or hack them down with our swords." I replied decisively as I drew my short sword and made short work of the bushes that were blocking the path.**

 **"This is just the beginning, thorn bushes are not a big issue for us. I am more concerned about the wild creatures that make their home here. This area has a high number of bears because the river is full of fish, we have to try and pass through here without disturbing them." Larten whispered.**

 **"So me hacking the thorn bushes out of our way wasn't the best idea then, sorry." I apologised.**

 **"I wanted you to solve the issue on your own, I am teaching you to be independant. If something happens to me then you will have no choice but to take care of yourself." Larten responded as we walked along the now thorn bush free path that was getting steeper all the time.**

 **I was keeping my eye on the sky as it was getting lighter. We didn't stop for anything because we were determined to reach the base of the mountain by dawn. Even when we reached the base of the mountain our journey was far from over, we had to climb it to reach the entrance to the underground tunnels. A lot of the old entrances had been sealed off from the inside after the previous battle, they had been used to sneak the vampaneze into the mountain and into the storerooms. As such they were sealed off to protect the mountain from being breached again.**

 **As the birds started tweeting and the sun started to rise behind the clouds I got my first glimpse of vampire mountain, it was really big. We were still trudging through thick snow and that slowed us down but that wasn't our only issue. We were walking over rocks now, there was no more grass or woodland, just rocks and sheer drops if you followed the wrong path.**

 **"Where is the boundary?" I asked Larten.**

 **"The boundary is marked by two marker stones, we must remove our shoes and socks before we pass through the two stones." Larten told me.**

 **"So that means walking barefoot on sharp, icy rocks, snow and hard ground?" I asked.**

 **"Yes, that is the real test." Larten answered simply.**

 **"It sounds painful and dangerous." I replied.**

 **"It is but that is what deters humans and seperates the weak from the strong. I have herbs, they will seal the pores on your feet so that they will not cut up so much on the rocks." Larten informed me.**

 **We kept on following the ever narrowing path until there was no path left, there were two stones with triangles marked on them and a large gap between the stones that we had to clear.**

 **"You did not tell me about a large gap that we have to cross over Larten." I complained.**

 **"I am teaching you to be independant. You must solve this problem on your own, you must find a safe way to cross and lead me over the gap. It is a test." Larten revealed.**

 **"You must be joking, I wouldn't know the first thing about crossing a gap like this." I remarked as I removed my snow boots and socks.**

 **"Calm yourself Anna, assess the situation and think about it. That is the only help I shall give you." Larten told me.**

 **I peered over the edge of the gap, it was a long drop. It was a very long way down. Climbing down there and up the other side wasn't possible. I looked around, I walked along the gap to see if it was narrower anywhere, a narrower gap we could jump over if we ran fast enough to build up enough speed to carry us over it. The gap got wider not narrower and the rocks rose up making the drop longer, jumping over it was also not an option. I thought about finding some materials and making a bridge but we had no rope and no planks, building a bridge was not possible either.**

 **The area we were in was sparce, there was next to nothing except snow, ice covered rocks and a couple of dead pine trees. They were very tall but they had no needles on them, they were rocking in the gusts. I thought it was going to fall down, suddenly the wind picked up out of nowhere, the snow came down like never before and we were right in the middle of a very severe blizzard!**


	16. Chapter 15

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 15:**

 **Larten and myself were standing on some very treacherous rocks looking over the edge of a very long sheer drop, it was like a chasm. My task was to cross over to the other side somehow and lead Larten across safely too. This was a test of courage, determination and cunning, there was a solution but what was it?**

 **The longer we remained here the worse the weather became so I knew that I had limited time to figure this out before it was too late. I was standing and thinking about the problem, I knew what I had to do but I didn't know how to do it.**

 **As I was standing and looking over the edge of the gap I heard an almighty crash, one of the pine trees had fallen down and crashed onto the surrounding rocks. That was it, the solution was staring me right in the face. The trunk was long enough to bridge the gap, we could walk across it like a balance beam.**

 **"I've got it, I've figured it out. I know how we're going to cross the gap." I announced happily.**

 **"What are you going to do?" Larten asked me.**

 **"That fallen pine tree is long enough to bridge the gap, if you help me lift it up and put it into position we can cross it like a balance beam or a high wire." I revealed.**

 **"I knew you would figure it out, you are very clever. Not every vampire would pass this test as quickly as you have." Larten said as he and I headed over to the fallen tree. We lifted it up and carried it over to where the gap was, then we placed it across the gap to act like a temporary bridge, the wind wouldn't hold it in place for long so we had to be quick.**

 **"You go over it first." I said.**

 **"No, ladies first. That is only right." Larten remarked so I took my first tentitive step upon the tree trunk. I used my speed to cross it, we weren't allowed to flit but we could move quickly.**

 **"Your turn Larten." I called back across the gap. Larten also crossed the temporary bridge with ease, soon we were ready to make the climb up the mountain.**

 **"Where are we heading for exactly?" I asked.**

 **"We have to go halfway up and then there is a tunnel, we go down that tunnel and enter the mountain through the main entrance." Larten told me as we started to pick which rocks we could stand on and which ones we could grab in order to pull ourselves up higher.**

 **"This is not easy." I huffed, I was aching and my feet were throbbing.**

 **"Follow me, do not deviate from the path that I am taking and use only the rocks which I touch. I can test them to see which ones are safe and which ones are not." Larten instructed me as he climbed ahead of me and higher up the mountain, I watched closely and paid careful attention to which rocks Larten stepped on and which ones he gripped onto. When he reached a platform he waited for me and then offered his hand to pull me up when I grabbed it. We were standing on a flat, rocky surface.**

 **"Follow me and do not make any noise." Larten said sternly as he walked ahead of me with his sword drawn. I followed behind him and I stayed close, I didn't know what to expect. Suddenly Larten hugged the side of the mountain so I did the same as he did.**

 **"Bear." Larten mouthed to me and then I saw it, it was huge. It was the biggest bear that I'd ever seen in my life and it was coming towards us...**

 **"Now what?" I mouthed back to Larten.**

 **"Stay here, leave this to me." Larten whispered as he advanced on the bear with his sword held out defensively infront of him.**

 **"Arggh, get out of here. It is just you and me now bear." Larten shouted out, he became almost wild as I watched him throwing rocks at the bear and trying to intimidate it, he wanted the bear to back away from the path so we could pass by but the bear stood its ground. Then Larten let out a long howl, he sounded like a wolf. I howled too, if there were any wolves in the area they'd come running over to help us, bears killed wolf cubs so naturally wolves would want to get rid of the bear if it was in their territory.**

 **I watched everything that was happening whilst my back was flat against the side of the rock that was on my right hand side. At that moment I heard a howl and then I saw them. There were four wolves heading directly towards where the bear was, they were growling at it and then they stood in an intimidating line. If the bear took a step towards them then they lunged at it. Two more wolves appeared, one sniffed my hand and then went to join the other four that were fighting the bear and the last wolf stood at my side and snarled in the bear's direction.**

 **The bear was outnumbered. It was also being attacked and harrassed, it growled loudly too but Larten wasn't phased by it. He and the wolves stood their ground and eventually the bear turned away and ran back down the mountain, the wolves chased it as it ran. Only one wolf remained and that was the one who stood by my side, I continued to follow Larten up the narrow winding path that would lead us to the tunnel which we were looking for. The wolf followed us, it walked by my side and every so often it'd turn around and sniff the air.**

 **"We are nearly there now Anna, it is not far to go. When we reach the end of this narrow path it will lead us into the tunnel." Larten told me.**

 **"That is the best news I've heard all morning. The sun is getting stronger now so it is just as well that we are nearly at the tunnel entrance." I remarked.**

 **"I am looking forward to drinking a mug of ale and catching up with Seba." Larten said, he sounded cheerful and that was rare for him.**

 **"I am looking forward to having a shower and then finding a warm place to sleep and curling up there. I am exhausted." I revealed.**

 **We followed the path, we had to hug the side of the rock and sidestep along it in some places because it was so narrow. Eventually the path widened out and turned off to the left, this was it. This was the entrance to vampire mountain.**

 **As we followed the tunnel the walls began to glow with this weird plant I'd never seen before.**

 **"What is that?" I asked, I was curious.**

 **"It is luminous lichen. It grows here and nowhere else in the world. The deeper we go the more there is, it lights our way." Larten explained.**

 **"Oh right, how does it glow?" I asked.**

 **"UV light makes it glow, it cannot glow on its own." Larten stated factually.**

 **"UV light from where?" I asked.**

 **"I do not know but that is what makes it glow." Larten responded.**

 **"Speak your names to the gate." a gruff voice said suddenly.**

 **"I am Larten Crepsley come to seek council." Larten replied.**

 **"I am Anna come to seek council." I answered quickly.**

 **"Larten Crepsley is recognised by the gate." the guard announced.**

 **"Anna is not recognised by the gate." the other guard replied sternly.**

 **"Anna is my mate, she's also my assistant and a half vampiress." Larten told the guard firmly.**

 **"Then Anna is also recognised by the gate, you may proceed into the halls." This is what the guard told us before he allowed us to walk by him and down the tunnel even further. The tunnel began to widen and get lighter as we passed yet more glowing lichen and then we saw a torch in a holder on the wall. The tunnel opened out completely and we found ourselves in a large room. There were torches burning on the wall and a fire was blazing, lots of others were in the hall too. They were talking and drinking, greeting each other and eating.**

 **"This is it Anna, welcome to vampire mountain." Larten announced as he took my hand and led me over to a man with greying hair, he was also dressed in red clothing.**

 **"Seba, it is good to see you again." Larten said, he sounded happy.**

 **"Larten it has been fifteen years since you last stepped foot in this mountain. I am glad to see you here. I wondered what had happened to you." Seba replied.**

 **"I have been travelling with the Cirque Du Freak." Larten revealed.**

 **"Who is this young lady Larten? Do not tell me that you have yet another mate. Every time I see you you are with somebody new." Seba declared. I just stood there and blushed, I was embarrased.**

 **"Anna is my new assistant, I saved her life and in exchange for that she agreed to become my assistant. The details of exactly what happened make up a long and complicated story." Larten told Seba.**

 **"It sounds like a story which I hope to hear in due course. Welcome to the mountain. Would you like me to sort out some quarters for you?" Seba asked me.**

 **"I am happy to share Larten's" I answered quickly.**

 **"Just as I thought, you are mates are you not Anna?" Seba questioned me directly. I looked at Larten and he looked back at me. I didn't know what to say but I thought honesty was best.**

 **"Yes, Larten is my mate. We have been together for a little over two years now and I love him more than anything. He means everything to me." I admitted.**

 **"At least your mate is truthful Larten, that is a good thing." Seba remarked.**

 **"I was going to tell you later on after catching up with Vanez and the others. I am going to announce it publicly after I have dissolved my blessed mateship." Larten explained.**

 **"I will not tell anybody." Seba swore.**

 **"Only the Princes can dissolve a blessed mateship. It has to be done either at a council meeting or you can request to see the Princes in their Dome and discuss the matter. Property and things like that get sorted out between the two of you at the same time. If you want my advice Larten then personally I would not rush into another blessed mateship. You must be certain that if you enter into a new one then it has to be with the right vampiress. It looks bad otherwise, they are meant to be permenant." Seba concluded.**

 **"Sophie and I were deeply in love when we had our blessed mateship ceremony. When I found out that she had slept with Gavnur and Prince Mika behind my back I could not forgive her for being unfaithful twice. That is why we seperated and I returned to the Cirque Du Freak." Larten told both of us.**

 **"In that case Larten you are perfectly justified in ending your blessed mateship agreement. I despise cheating as much as you do." Seba acknowledged.**

 **"It is a private matter that I do not want to be discussed or spread around. It is my business and nobody else needs to know about it." Larten told us.**

 **"I will not say a word to anyody." Seba vowed.**

 **"Neither will I, you can trust me." I promised.**

 **"Very well, I am going to get a mug of ale and catch up with Vanez Blaine." Larten stated.**

 **"What about me?" I asked.**

 **"Come with me and I will introduce you to all of my friends." Larten answered.**

 **"What about the wolf?" I asked, the lone wolf was still by my side.**

 **"Feed it and look after it, it obviously wants to be with you." Larten replied.**

 **"Like a pet?" I asked.**

 **"Yes, a pet wolf. It needs a name if it is to be a pet." Larten remarked.**

 **"OK, I'll name it Lucas. I think it is a male." I responded.**

 **"That wolf is a female." Larten informed me.**

 **"Then I'll name her Sasha, it means helpful and she helped to defend me from that bear." I announced.**

 **"Perfect, I like it." Larten agreed.**

 **"I'm glad you approve. I hope that Evra is taking good care of my cat and my hamster." I said, I wanted to know if they were OK.**

 **"He loves animals, they will be fine. Come now, let us go and find Vanez." Larten declared as he led me out of the hall.**

 **We walked hand in hand down the corridor and into a much larger hall, there were a lot of vampires in this hall. They were all cheering and going nuts.**

 **"What is going on?" I asked.**

 **"A duel on the Bars is taking place, the vampires are cheering on their favourite duellist." Larten explained.**

 **"Can I watch?" I asked.**

 **"Yes, we both can." Larten remarked as he led me to the front so I could see the match clearly.**

 **Two vampires were duelling, a woman and a man. I watched the duel and how they were really hitting each other with their staves. A few minutes later the man was knocked off and he landed on the ground with a thud.**

 **Half of the vampires were cheering and the others were groaning and disappointed.**

 **"That was over quickly." I stated.**

 **"Duels normally are, especially when a duellist is highly skilled." Larten replied.**

 **"Can we duel?" I asked.**

 **"You must be trained, it takes a long time. You cannot just step onto the bars and duel. It is not that easy." Larten revealed.**

 **"Oh OK, I'll just watch for now then." I decided.**

 **"The duel is over and there is no new challenger, we shall return later. Vanez is over there." Larten said as he pointed out Vanez Blaine to me. We went over to where he was sitting and Larten introduced me to him.**

 **"Hello, I'm Anna." I said.**

 **"Hi, I'm Vanez Blaine the Games Master. I referee the matches and repair the broken equipment." Vanez told me.**

 **"I see. I want to learn how to duel on the Bars." I announced.**

 **"Ask Kate to teach you, she is very good at teaching people." Vanez revealed.**

 **"OK, thanks for the tip. You don't mind do you?" I asked Larten.**

 **"No, it is a common hobby here. Most vampiresses can duel. It is what Arra would have wanted, they duel in her name to keep her memory alive." Larten explained.**

 **"I understand." I commented.**

 **"I see you have a four legged friend with you." Vanez said as he looked at Sasha the wolf.**

 **"Oh this is Sasha, she is a wolf that has chosen to stay by my side. She defended me against a bear on our way here. You should have seen her snarling at it." I answered.**

 **"I like wolves, we get lots of them here at this time of year. You can hear them howling at night." Vanez said.**

 **"A wolf pack saved my life. I was pushed into this fast flowing, freezing cold river, a wolf dragged me out and the others in the pack kept me warm. The alpha female let me drink her own milk. If not for that wolf pack I'd be dead." I concluded.**

 **"They like us a lot, we have an affinity with them." Vanez agreed as he reached out his hand to let Sasha sniff it, she sniffed it and then she lay down beside my legs.**

 **"It was good catching up with you again Larten, Anna I hope you'll enjoy your time at the mountain." Vanez said as he got up to referee a match.**

 **"I need a drink, a shower and a good sleep." I declared.**

 **"Follow me and I will get those things sorted for you." Larten said as we left the Hall of Sport (Larten had told me its name when we entered it) as soon as I stood up Sasha stood up and she trotted along beside me down the corridor. We headed to the Hall where food and drinks were available to all who wanted it.**

 **I had been given a mug of beer but I didn't like it so I swapped it for blood instead, I needed to feed. I found some stew and bread that was being served so I had some and I got a large bone for Sasha. She lay down beside me and gnawed on it for a while. When I had finished my mug of blood and my bowlful of stew I asked Larten where I could have a shower. He led me to a much smaller hall that had waterfalls and pools of water in it. I took my towel out of my backpack and then Larten left me to it. He took my backpack to his quarters for safekeeping. Sasha was still gnawing on her bone, it kept her occupied whilst I washed. The water was absolutely freezing but it was the only way to wash so I just washed as quickly as I could, wrapped the towel around me and dried myself off. I put my clean clothes on and went back down to the Hall of Khledon Lurt where Larten was waiting for me.**

 **"I will show you to our quarters now, I will join you as soon as I have sorted out a couple of things." Larten said, he kissed me. It was a passionate kiss that went on for a while because we hadn't been intimate with each other recently. He held me for a long time afterwards and then he left me to go and attend to his business. I got into the coffin and I lay down in it, Sasha jumped into it and lay down beside me, she had her head by my feet. I turned over onto my side and curled up, it was a very comfortable coffin and that was good. It made a change from the hard, cold ground outside. Larten's coffin had a pillow in it. It was well padded and it was big enough for the two of us to sleep in and make love in without being squashed or restricted.**

 **When Larten arrived back in our quarters he got into the coffin beside me, he tried to stretch his legs out but Sasha was in the way.**

 **"Anna that wolf is taking up too much room in the coffin, she cannot sleep in it." Larten complained.**

 **"Leave her be, I want her in here. She makes me feel safe." I replied.**

 **"Anna I must insist that your wolf does not sleep with us." Larten reiterated.**

 **"She won't leave my side, you know that." I answered.**

 **"She can sleep next to the coffin but not inside it." Larten compremised.**

 **"Fine." I grumbled. I stood up and Sasha leapt up too as though she hadn't really been asleep. I stepped out of the coffin and Sasha jumped out of it too.**

 **"Stay there." I said to Sasha firmly as I pointed to the space beside the coffin. I put my towel down for her to lie on. She whined at me but I remained firm, I'd sort out a decent bed for her after I had slept.**

 **"Are you happy now?" I asked Larten sarcastically.**

 **"I am content." Larten replied.**

 **"I just want to sleep, I'm really tired." I said as I lay back down in the coffin and pulled Larten's cloak over my body. Larten pulled me close to him and held me, I kissed him and he kissed me back. I slept well for the first time in a long time, I was glad that I had made it to the mountain safely.**

 **When I woke up the next evening Sasha was curled up on the towel, I got up, got myself dressed and headed down to the Hall of Kledon Lurt. After that I went to the Hall of Purta Vin Grahl and then to the Halls of Sport. I wanted to meet Kate and ask her if she would train me to duel.**

 **I saw a young woman standing on the Bars by herself, I called up to her;**

 **"Hey, are you Kate?"**

 **"No, I'm Sophie can I help you?" Sophie called back.**

 **"Vanez told me to ask Kate to train me how to duel." I replied.**

 **"She's in the medical wing with a fractured wrist, she won't be duelling for a while. I'll teach you instead." Sophie offered.**

 **"Thanks, I'd like that very much." I agreed. I grabbed a stave from the rack and hopped up onto the Bars, it took me a moment or two to steady myself and find my balance.**

 **"First I'll show you how to block a strike." Sophie said as she suddenly swung her stave around, it connected with my own stave which I had instinctively raised.**

 **"Very good, many first time duellists don't see that coming but you reacted on instinct. That's the sign of a good duellist." Sophie told me.**

 **"I know a bit about hand to hand combat, Larten taught me how to use a sword so I know about instinctive blocking." I explained.**

 **"Do you know who I am?" Sophie glared at me.**

 **"You told me that your name is Sophie but that's all I know about you." I answered.**

 **"How do you know Larten?" Sophie asked me.**

 **"He's my mentor. This is my first visit to the mountain." I clarified.**

 **"Oh well that's alright then, I have no objection to him having a new assistant. His last one is now a Vampire Prince. As long as you are only his assistant we will get along fine." Sophie declared.**

 **"What do you mean by only his assistant?" I asked, confused.**

 **"Larten is my blessed mate, in other words I am his wife." Sophie announced as she flashed her rings so I could see them.**

 **"Larten told me that you two are seperated and that your blessed mateship is soon to be dissolved." I stated.**

 **"That isn't what he told me yesterday when he was in our shared quarters." Sophie responded.**

 **"But Larten and I share quarters, how can he share with you and me?" I asked, I was very confused at this point.**

 **"You what?" Sophie shouted in anger.**

 **"I share quarters with Larten and Sasha my wolf. He and I slept in the same coffin." I admitted.**

 **"Anna, Larten is a serial womaniser. He has been unfaithful to me more times than I can count. It is not your fault, you don't know him like I do. He's just playing wth you, he's with me." Sophie reiterated.**

 **"Are you serious?" I asked as tears welled up in my eyes.**

 **"Yes, unfortunately I am serious. I don't make stuff up. If Larten slept with you then that was after he'd mated with me. He mated with me and then said something about Seba and him catching up so he left me, I think he made up an excuse to leave me so he could sleep with you. He doesn't know the meaning of the words faithful and honest." Sophie concluded.**

 **"Larten told me that you've slept with Prince Mika and Gavnur, he told me that your blessed mateship was being dissolved because you slept with them." I explained.**

 **"I slept with them yes but that was after I caught Larten kissing his other ex mate who is now dead, she was killed on the battlefield. I did what I did in revenge, no other reason." Sophie confessed.**

 **"So where does this leave us? You are obviously not at all like what Larten made you out to be and he is not the man I thought he was." I acknowledged sadly.**

 **"Your best option is to find somebody else, keep Larten as your mentor but find a new mate who will be faithful to you." Sophie suggested.**

 **"Yes, you're probably right." I confirmed as I hopped down from the Bars in tears and went back to the quarters I shared with Larten.**

 **Sasha was awake when I got back to the quarters, she trotted over to me and nuzzled me by way of a greeting. I stroked her and I gave her a leg of beef that I had brought for her. She settled down on the towel and ate it slowly. I didn't know where Larten was and if what Sophie had told me was the truth then I didn't want to see him. I just lay in the coffin and cried.**

 **Sasha finished eating the bone that I gave her, she was a small wolf but she ate quite a bit. She came into the coffin, she put her head on my lap and she rested it there. When she heard me whimpering she licked my face and she nuzzled into me, I think she was trying to make me feel better and she did.**

 **I lay in the coffin with Sasha for quite a while, I was upset and angry. I felt like I had been made a fool of but until I questioned Larten about Sophie's accusations I could not be sure that what she had told me was the truth. I snuggled into Sasha, her warm, furry body was pressed up against mine and I knew that she would not let anybody near me if they wished to do me harm. I knew she belonged in a pack of her own kind but she had followed me so she clearly wanted to stick with me.**

 **I eventually got up and went outside the mountain, it was dark outside and the moon was behind the clouds. I stood outside in the snow and the cold for a while, the fresh, crisp air was nice to breathe because the fires in the mountain made the halls smokey. Sasha came outside with me, she ran around and howled like any young wolf would. I saw some other wolves appearing out of the darkness, they all bundled with Sasha and I watched them play together. I headed back inside, I needed to speak to Larten about everything that Sophie had told me. As soon as I turned to go back inside Sasha came bounding over to me, a couple of the other wolves did too. I stood there, let them sniff me and then they ran off back down the mountain. Only Sasha stayed with me.**

 **"Go find Larten." I said to Sasha, she looked at me for a moment sniffed the air and bounded off down the tunnel. I followed her and sure enough she found Larten, he was chatting with Vanez Blaine and another vampire who I didn't know. Sasha tugged at his cloak so he turned around and he saw me.**

 **"Larten we need to talk." I said sternly.**

 **"Anna what is wrong?" Larten asked, he looked concerned.**

 **"I'll talk to you alone, nobody else needs to hear about our business." I replied.**

 **"Vanez, I shall join you in a quart of ale later." Larten said before he turned and followed me back to our quarters.**

 **"Now Anna, what is the problem? Can I help you?" Larten asked me as we sat on the chairs that we had in our quarters.**

 **"Sophie has told me a lot of things, she's made some accusations against you and I want the truth." I told Larten, I was not happy.**

 **"What has she said?" Larten asked.**

 **"She said that you have mated with her since we've been here, she's called you a womaniser and a liar who doesn't understand the meanings of the two words faithful and honest. She has said other things too like she only slept with Prince Mika and Gavnur in revenge because she caught you kissing your former mate and other things like this." I clarified.**

 **"How dare she tell you such filth? None of that is true, she is stirring up trouble and I can guarentee that when I was with Sophie I was always faithful to her. I never even looked at another vampiress." Larten declared.**

 **"She truly is nasty if she is spreading this rubbish about you, I am sure that she's told other vampires things like this too. I think she wants us to split up or something." I said.**

 **"Anna you know me, I would never hurt you. If you were to ask any of the Generals about me they will swear that I am honourable and that I have good standing. You do not earn good standing if you act in the way that Sophie has accused me of acting." Larten concluded.**

 **"I have been hurt before Larten, I find it hard it hard to trust people. I want to believe you but Sophie is very convincing, she threatened me in a way because she told me that she's your wife and that I have to stay away from you. In fact she told me to keep you as my mentor but find another mate who won't cheat on me. Those were her exact words." I acknowledged.**

 **"Leave this to me, I will go to the Princes directly and demand that they dissolve the blessed mateship. I will also ask that Sophie is told in no uncertain terms to stay away from us, she should also have some sanction because of the lies that she has told you." Larten replied with some urgency.**

 **"Please just get it sorted out, the stress isn't good for me. I've lost sleep because this whole thing is hanging over my head. Sophie even had the nerve to flash her rings in my face as if she were bragging about the fact that you are her property or something. She's crazy." I concluded.**

 **"I will deal with it, just stay here and relax or take Sasha for a walk." Larten suggested.**

 **"We've been outside, it's snowing hard out there. I told Sasha to find you and she led me right to you, she's smart." I replied.**

 **"Then go to the Halls of Sport and watch some of the games, I do not want you being caught up in this messy business." Larten instructed me.**

 **"If it's all the same to you I'd rather stick by you and go to see the Princes when you do, I said to Prince Vancha and Prince Arrow that I would go and see them anyway." I explained.**

 **"Very well, you may come with me now. I am not sure if they permit animals but they permitted a LIttle Person so maybe Sasha will be allowed into the Prince's Dome." Larten answered.**

 **"Do I look suitable to meet the Princes?" I asked.**

 **"No, your clothing is too plain. You need a dress and wear the tiara I bought for you too." Larten responded.**

 **I opened up my backpack and I pulled out a nice dress that I had, I put it on and then I fixed my hair so that the tiara would sit nicely on my head without slipping off. It was a bit big for my small head.**

 **We headed to the Prince's Dome, it was well guarded. We weren't allowed any weapons in the Dome and since Kurda's betrayal the security had been increased. We had to be searched and then we had to wait for ages before we were finally admitted into the Prince's Dome. It was large and the Princes (with the exception of Prince Mika Ver Leth) were all sitting on their thrones. When Prince Darren saw us he waved and welcomed us into the Prince's Dome. Prince Paris Skyle was the oldest and the wisest out of all the Princes.**

 **"Welcome, Larten it has been a long time since you were last here. How can we help you?" Prince Paris asked.**

 **"I would like you to dissolve my blessed mateship with immediate effect, my former blessed mate has caused no end of trouble for me. She has spread lies about me and she has been unfaithful to me also." Larten claimed.**

 **"We cannot dissolve a blessed mateship until we have spoken to your blessed mate, she must be here at the same time otherwise she has no opportunity to defend herself and claim her property." Prince Paris said.**

 **"I understand, she should be found and brought before you so that she can claim her property and agree to the dissolving of our blessed mateship." Larten agreed.**

 **"We shall send somebody to summon her here to the Dome, then she can plead her case." Prince Arrow added.**

 **"Larten, you shall wait here until your former mate has been summoned and then we will proceed with the formalities." Prince Vancha instructed, we took our seats and we waited for Sophie to be found and summoned to the Prince's Dome.**

 **Sophie was on the Bars when she was located, it was her favourite place to hang out. She had been trained how to duel by Arra Sails herself so Sophie was a very good duellist, in fact she had claimed the Bars Championship Trophy three years in a row.**

 **Sophie entered the Prince's Dome, she was favoured by the Princes because she was Prince Mika's mate. The Princes were not permitted to show favour to her publicly so she had to be treated in the same way as every other vampiress, in the privacy of Prince Mika's quarters when they were alone it was another matter.**

 **"Sophie, you have been summoned here to discuss the dissolving of your blessed mateship. Are you willing to dissolve your blessed mateship with immediate effect?" Prince Paris asked Sophie directly.**

 **"Yes, I no longer wish to be bound in any way to Larten Crepsley. I am now pledged to and in a mateship with Prince Mika Ver Leth, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Larten for the kind things he has done for me in the past, I also wish to apologise for my conduct towards his current mate Anna. I was drunk and I said some things to her which I regret, it was a poor judgement call on my part." Sophie acknowledged.**

 **"In regards to your property you may keep all that is yours, however you must return anything which you have borrowed from the other party." Prince Vancha declared.**

 **"Very well, I shall empty out the quarters which I used to share with Larten, most of the items in there were given to us by Seba Nile to use. They belong to him not Larten or myself. I have one of Larten's cloaks which I shall return to him. I used to sleep under it but not any longer. I also have my rings that were given to me during our blessed mateship ceremony. I still wear them because when we first separated I was hoping for a reconcilliation, however that isn't going to happen." Sophie explained.**

 **"The rings you may keep because they are classed as a gift, any furniture that was borrowed from Seba must be returned to him. Any clothing or other items that are yours must be boxed up and moved into your new quarters. The quarters that you shared together will be reassigned to a new vampire as neither you or Larten require them." Prince Arrow announced.**

 **"All that remains to do is officially declare your blessed mateship dissolved and no longer acknowledged." Prince Vancha concluded.**

 **"I declare it to be desolved and no longer in effect." Prince Paris said.**

 **"I declare your former union dissolved." Prince Arrow added.**

 **"I declare your blessed mateship dissolved." Prince Darren stated.**

 **"That ladies and gentlemen concludes this matter of business." Prince Paris said before Larten and Sophie stepped down from the platform. I had remained in my seat. Sophie left the Prince's Dome straight away, she had to pack up her belongings and move them into the quarters that she shared with Prince Mika, Larten asked Vanez and Gavnur to help him move the furniture out of the quarters that had been his previously, they returned it to one of Seba's storerooms as it was not needed by anyone.**

 **I went and ate something, I hadn't eaten since before I had entered the Prince's Dome. Sasha came with me, she hadn't been allowed in the Prince's Dome but she waited outside the door for me. I found myself a seat at a vacant table, it was made from wood and animal leg bones. I helped myself to a bowl of broth and some bread, the bread was freshly baked but it was very hard and crusty. Luckily my strong vampire teeth were able to bite through the bread and chew it up without any difficulty. It tasted good, I finished my broth and it had a very strange taste. I had never tried anything like it before in my life. I liked it but Larten's cooking was much better.**

 **Sasha whined at me, I didn't know what she wanted so I ignored it. She whined again and got up. She was sniffing around and wondering all over the hall. Then I saw what she was doing, she was searching for scraps that had been dropped. Wolves often scavenge for food if they don't make a kill.**

 **"Sasha, come here." I called and Sasha came over to me.**

 **"Sit." I commanded and Sasha sat instantly.**

 **"Wait there." I said and then I walked up to one of the tables. I picked up a piece of meat that looked like a rack of ribs, nobody was sitting at the table so I picked up the meat and gave it to Sasha. She lay down and started to tear into it, she was hungry and I hadn't even realised. I didn't know at the time how much meat wolves can eat in a day, I was feeding her twice a night but maybe I needed to feed her more often. After Sasha had finished off the ribs I took her outside again so that she could do her business. The snow was very thick where it had settled on the ground but that was not an issue for my wolf, they are used to the cold and the snow. She ran around and started rolling in the snow as if she were a husky. She had a lot of energy to burn off and when she was outside in her natural habitat it was good for her. I never forgot that she was a wild animal, if not for the vampire blood in my veins she wouldn't have come anywhere near me. The sky was getting light so I went back indoors and Sasha followed me.**

 **The first council meeting was going to be starting and I didn't want to miss it. There was no schedule at the mountain as such, whether it was day or night didn't matter because the tunnels and the halls were deep down inside the rock. You went to bed and got up whenever you liked unless you had duties to do.**

 **I had no idea where the council meetings were held, I'd have to ask somebody but I noticed that a lot of vampires were heading in the same direction so I followed them down the corridor. The vampires headed into a hall that had benches set up inside it, there was also a raised platform with thrones on it, I assumed that was where the Princes would sit to preside over the meeting. The vampires took up their seats like children at a school assembly, I sat down on one of the wooden benches and I waited for Larten to arrive. Sasha lay down by my feet and went to sleep, all of the running around in the snow had worn her out.**

 **Larten entered the hall and sat next to me, Gavnur sat on my opposite side. The Princes entered the hall and then the meeting begun. It was a long drawn out affair, it was boring because I didn't know what the Princes were talking about half the time. Two Generals got into a heated debate over something which was fun to watch, they argued so much that in the end they were ejected from the hall and we took the vote without them.**

 **When it came to the end of the meeting Prince Paris asked if anybody had any other business, nobody had any issues to raise so the Princes stood up and exited the hall. Then we exited afterwards.**

 **"That was boring." I said to Gavnur.**

 **"Those meetings are always boring, I fell asleep during one once to the great embarrasment of my mentor at the time." Gavnur admitted.**

 **"Who mentored you back then?" I asked.**

 **"Well I got passed around because nobody wanted me as their assistant, I was on my own for much of my life. I eventually got taken on by Vanez Blaine, he taught me how to maintain and mend the equipment in the Halls of Sport." Gavnur told me.**

 **"It is sad that nobody wanted you, I think you're a great guy." I complimented Gavnur and he went red.**

 **"Aww have I embarrased you?" I asked Gavnur with a grin on my face.**

 **"Yes you have, I would not expect to hear a comment like that from you. I think you're a lovely woman too Anna." Gavnur replied, he was still red faced.**

 **"Gavnur, I hope you are not flirting with my mate. If you are and I catch you I shall take a dim view of it." Larten said to Gavnur when he caught up with us.**

 **"Relax Larten, I was only saying how Vanez took me on as his assistant because nobody else wanted to mentor me." Gavnur explained innocently.**

 **"Anna is that the truth?" Larten asked me.**

 **"Yes, that is the truth." I replied.**

 **"Very well then, you may continue your conversation. I am going to bed." Larten concluded.**

 **"I will join you there shortly, I just want to get a drink first." I stated as I followed Gavnur back to the hall where all the food and drinks were. I filled my flask up with fresh water and took it to bed with me, I often woke up with a dry mouth so having a flask of water next to me was useful.**

 **I opened the door of the quarters that Larten and I shared, Sasha went and lay down on the towel and I got into the coffin. Larten was already in the coffin and he was waiting for me to join him, I was tired but we hadn't been intimate with each other in ages.**

 **"We haven't been intimate with each other for a while." I complained.**

 **"I know we have not, it is not advisable to mate whilst making the journey to the mountain. After arriving at the mountain vampires can mate as often as they like, we all have to satisfy our lust. There are no rules at all with regards to mating." Larten replied.**

 **"Apart from keeping the noise down and not being unfaithful, those are the only two rules I can think of." I said.**

 **"Noise levels do not matter, all vampires are the same. Being unfaithful is not encouraged, it is up to the individuals involved as to whether they want an open relationship or an exclusive relationship." Larten concluded.**

 **"So it doesn't matter if I scream out loudly?" I asked.**

 **"No, not at all. If you listen closely you can hear other couples mating, not that you would wish to listen to that. There are very few female vampires, when new vampiresses join the clan all the males fight for the rights to mate with them." Larten told me.**

 **I didn't reply to Larten's last comment I kissed him instead, he kissed me back as always, one thing led to another and we ended up having sex. I had missed the physical side of our relationship a lot so I didn't hold back, I wanted to make up for all the nights when we hadn't done anything and that is exactly what happened.**

 **We stayed in our quarters for much of the next few hours that followed, we were resting because both of us were exhausted. We hadn't had any sleep at all for obvious reasons. Sasha was whining and yapping so eventually I had to get up and feed her, she was quite demanding. I didn't mind at all, having her around meant that I was safe even if Larten wasn't with me.**

 **I gave Sasha a whole rabbit to eat skin and all, it seemed to satisfy her for a while. There were no council meetings scheduled because the last vampires had arrived at the mountain, this meant that it was time for the Festival of the Undead. No business could take place during the festival so that meant no council meetings and a three night break for any vampires who were taking their Trials of Death in addition to their period of preparation. It was vital healing time for those who got injured at the beginning of their Trials.**

 **I knew that I'd have to take the Trials someday but not until I was much older and I had been well trained. I was far too young. Prince Darren had taken and passed his Trials, it worked out to his advantage in the end. There had been a time when he was almost executed for failing the Trial known as The Blooded Boars. On the other hand had Darren not have failed that Trial and ran away he never would have discovered Kurda's treachery. It was almost as though he was** _ **meant to fail that Trial.**_ **I'm sure destiny had a hand in it along the way but nobody talked about it. Darren had been invested as a Prince and that was the only thing which mattered.**

 **I was looking forward to the Festival of the Undead, it sounded like a lot of fun. The clan was missing some of its members, some had decided not to attend the council and some had been killed in the last big battle. The battle had happened when Kurda tried to take control of the mountain and he let the vampaneze overrun it. He failed in his attempt and he was executed as a traitor. Several vampaneze had survived the battle and they were executed. A couple of vampires who had been in league with Kurda were also executed as traitors.**

 **The biggest loss to the clan and the one which everybody regretted was the death of Arra, she had been killed by a vampaneze called Glalda. Glalda was killed in the same battle so Arra's death had at least been avenged. I never had the chance to meet Arra but I'm not sure that we would have got along. She was Sophie's mentor and she was Larten's former mate. Arra was not happy when she found out that Sophie had been seeing Larten in secret behind her back. There was nothing that Arra could do about it though so she learnt to accept it. After Arra had found out that Sophie and Larten were together she entered into a new mateship agreement with a General named Darryl. He had been killed in a fight to the death challenge shortly after Arra had died, their ashes were scattered all over the mountain. The Bars became a lasting memorial. After Arra's death the Bars had been covered in flowers and tokens of respect, they were left there for a certain amount of time and then they were removed. The council decided that Arra would not have wanted the Bars to gather dust and never be used again. Due to this fact the council agreed to let people duel upon the Bars once more.**

 **I was in my quarters getting ready for the Festival of the Undead, I had a dress to wear. It was long and it almost touched the ground. It was a deep plum colour which complimented my dark hair. I spun my hair up into a bun and fixed my tiara, everybody dressed in their best clothes during the festival. I walked out of my quarters and down into the hall where everybody was gathering. The Princes announced the start of the festival, as soon as they did this everybody started dancing and challenging each other to fights. I stayed out of the way, I had no intention of fighting and ruining my dress.**

 **Ale, beer and wine were the alcoholic beverages on offer. For the majority of the time I stuck to water or blood. Somebody had brought a barrel of cider with them to the mountain but it was empty within an hour. I had two glasses of it, I didn't like it but I felt obliged to have at least one drink because everybody else was drinking.**

 **I sat at an unoccupied table with Sasha on the floor next to me, she growled at a hidiously drunk vampire when he came over to me. She wasn't going to let anybody near me unless it was Larten or if I told her to settle down.**

 **I put a big chunk of meat on the floor for Sasha to eat, it gave her something to focus on when everything around her was chaos. Sasha was not tame in any way, she was a wild animal and I had to remember that fact. It didn't matter how much time I spent with her either, she'd always be wild. She acted like a dog when she was with me but she could turn on somebody in an instant.**

 **I could never trust her to live with the Cirque Du Freak performers. My plan was to stay in the mountain and not return to the Cirque Du Freak, either that or I'd leave Sasha behind and catch up with her at the next council (if she was still alive).**

 **I watched the dancing and the howling contest, Sasha howled a lot when the other vampires were howling but I chose not to take part in the contest. I wanted to dance but if I got up then Sasha would get up too and I couldn't dance with her next to me. I didn't know how to dance either, nobody had ever taught me and I didn't want to embarrass myself.**

 **I was challenged to a duel but I declined. I said that I hadn't been trained to duel yet and I didn't know the rules. When the vampire General in question asked me if he could teach me the rules I said that I'd need my mentor's permission and he wasn't around. He left me alone after that, the fact that Sasha was growling at him may also have had something to do with his quick exit.**

 **At the end of the party a large amount of drunk vampires were staggering around the halls and trying to find their quarters, being sober I was able to find my quarters easily. Larten wasn't there when I got back so I left to try and find him. He wasn't in the halls and Seba was missing too. I figured that they were still drinking so I went to bed, Sasha got into the coffin beside me and acted as a furry heat mat. I tried to sleep but the drunk vampires were being rather loud and disorderly.**

 **My quarters were dark so I lit the torches that were on the walls, there was no electric at the mountain and no modern technology either. The flames flickered and made dark patches on the stone walls but at least now I could see better than before. My vampire night vision was great but I still liked to have a light source. I needed the light to play cards, I sat at the table and set them up to play solitaire. Larten had taught me how to play solitaire, I still had no idea how the cards packed themselves away when he clicked his fingers though. I made up my mind to ask him to teach me how to do it. I was halfway through my game when Larten returned to our quarters. I sped through the game rather than playing at normal speed and then I clicked my fingers, the cards remained on the table. I tried it again and again but the cards stayed motionless.**

 **"What are you doing?" Larten asked me.**

 **"I'm trying to pack the cards away like you do but it isn't working." I replied.**

 **Larten clicked his fingers and the cards immediately packed themselves away into their box.**

 **"I've tried over and over but the cards don't budge. How is it done?" I asked, I was frustrated by this point.**

 **"It is an illusion, the cards do not move. I am the one that moves." Larten said.**

 **"I've seen you do it a dozen times, you can be standing four or five feet away from the table but the cards still pack themselves away. I'm confused." I admitted.**

 **"I click my fingers, that distracts your eyes and in the time it takes me to do that I have used my speed, picked up the cards and packed them away. It is a mere trick, you know how fast I can move." Larten revealed.**

 **"Oh so that's how you do it." I said as it dawned on me how stupid I had been. Up until this point I thought Larten was telekinetic like Alicia but he wasn't.**

 **"Can you teach me some of your tricks?" I asked.**

 **"I can do but you will have to work on your speed, you can get away with fooling humans easily but any vampire would see what was happening." Larten replied.**

 **"When will I become a full vampire?" I asked.**

 **"When I deem you to be ready unless of course the purge hits you first, the purge happens when half blooded vampires become full vampires by default. The vampire blood finally takes over from the human blood, a lot of things happen to a vampire during the purge and not all of them are pleasant." Larten told me.**

 **"If I am fully blooded will I still get the purge?" I asked.**

 **"You may do or you may not, every vampire is different. Prince Darren went through it twice." Larten answered.**

 **"I'll just have to wait and see then won't I?" I claimed.**

 **"Yes." Larten remarked.**

 **"I'm tired, let's turn in for the day." I said before I yawned.**

 **"That is a good plan, Sasha get out of there." Larten commanded Sasha but she didn't move from inside the coffin.**

 **"Sasha go on your blanket." I commanded and Sasha immediately jumped up and went to lie down on the blanket I'd given her in place of the towel. The blanket was much softer and thicker than the towel so it was more comfortable for her. Sasha had the blanket over the hard rock floor of our quarters, it was wide enough for her whole body to fit on it. I'd also given her a pillow that was wrapped in one of my old shirts, it smelt like me so she'd rest her head on it instead of my lap. I took very good care of my wolf and she looked after me too.**

 **I loved Sasha very much. Yes, she was wild and she always would be wild but I still loved her nevertheless. Sasha had chosen me and I was happy to have her by my side, I spoilt her rotten. I fed my wolf better than I fed myself, she always got the best bones that I could find, I fed her both raw and cooked meats and she drank fresh spring water that I went out and collected just for her. Sasha didn't listen to a word that Larten said, in fact she liked to annoy him by playing tug of war with his cloaks and she even chewed up one of his shoes once. On the other hand when it came to me Sasha did everything I told her to do, I didn't tell her to do much though because most stuff was automatic. I loved walking around the halls and outside with her, she brought down a deer and then she dragged it back to where I was standing. I had no idea that Sasha was that strong, normally wolves hunt in packs but they can bring down their prey solo if they have to. I let her have it, she'd earnt it and I had already eaten. Sasha howled and then some other wolves approached, they all fed together and nothing was wasted. The only trace of the kill was some bloodstained snow.**

 **The other wolves came over to me, I let them bundle me and jump on me as that was a wolf greeting, I was one of them as far as they knew. I was learning wolf body language, I rolled over to expose my belly, that was a sign of submission and trust. I knelt down and Sasha put her jaws around my neck, by allowing her to do that it was me telling her that I trusted her. We played tug of war with a rabbit because wolves fight over food, it was my way of encouraging Sasha to show her natural behaviour. I didn't want her to forget that she had wild instincts, those same instincts would later on prove vital to my survival...**


	17. Chapter 16

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 16:**

 **When I woke up Sasha was asleep next to the coffin on her blanket, Larten was also asleep. I had to get up because I had duties to do, it was my first night doing duties and I wasn't exactly sure what I had to do. I went to ask Seba if he knew what my duties were. I couldn't find Seba anywhere so I went to the hall to eat, I had to feed Sasha or she'd yap at me until I did. I threw her a whole chicken and it was raw. I was a bit worried about the bones in it because they could splinter. As a result of this before I gave the chicken to Sasha I removed as many of the bones as I could.**

 **I could hear her crunching on the few remaining thicker bones but that was OK, the chicken was gone within a few minutes so I had to find her something else to eat. One chicken was not going to satisfy my wolf, she ate a lot of meat but she never seemed to gain any weight. I think was because as a young wolf she had a high metabolism, she had powerful muscles and lethal fangs. Her top canine teeth were at least five inches long and they were very sharp, they could rip through flesh without any difficulty whatsoever. Sasha's claws were also sharp and long, she used them for digging through the snow to find tasty snacks like voles and rats. Sometimes I hid chunks of beef under the snow to encourage Sasha to use her nose, again this was playing upon her natural instincts.**

 **I still had no idea what my duties were. For the moment I was happy to frolic in the snow with Sasha and bond with her some more. I threw chunks of meat for her and she caught them or she chased after them before she ate them. This way she was exercising and using her nose at the same time. When the wind was really cold I went back inside to warm up, there were plenty of fires that had been lit in the halls so I stood by one. Sasha was covered in snow and her fur was wet, I rubbed her down with a towel to dry her off. Sasha wasn't cold, her fur was cold but she was warm. Sasha stood by the fire next to me and she nuzzled me. I had her loose hairs all over my clean shirt but I didn't care. Sasha had this thing about rubbing her head on me, I think she was scent marking or showing affection. I just stroked her and threw her tidbits.**

 **I eventually found out what my duties were, I had to polish all of the decorative weapons that were hanging up in the Halls of Sport. I also had to check the staves to see if any were damaged, if the wood was splintered then the stave went on the fire. It was common to find the odd splinter but if the stave was literally falling apart then it was burnt and replaced.**

 **Arra's personal stave was hanging up high above the Bars, it had black ribbons tied onto it, nobody was permitted to use it but it hung there as a lasting memorial. Sometimes the stave was wiped off with a damp cloth to remove the dust, it had an occasional polish too but then it was hung up again as if it were an ornament.**

 **It didn't take me very long to complete my duties in the Halls of sport, I had other jobs to do elsewhere too because everybody pitched in at the mountain. Just because it was the Festival of the Undead it didn't mean that the cleaning and organising was ignored. In fact because it was the Festival of the Undead all of the halls got cleaned and decorated.**

 **There weren't many decorations at the mountain so we hung up strips of coloured cloth and we had some ribbons but that was about it. It was hard to hang decorations and get them to stay up because our hall walls were all solid rock. We tied most of the decorations onto wooden poles that were in each corner of every hall. The wooden poles were acting as supports for the ceilings.**

 **I was looking forward to the second night of the festival, I didn't know what was coming up next so I was intrigued to find out. I heard some vampire folk stories, they were good and they were about vampires who had good standing. Some stories were about battles and the vampires who had faught in them, other stories were about legendary vampires who founded the mountain and who made the very hall that I was standing in.**

 **Most stories were more like tall tales than actual historical events, it was like Chinese whispers. You'd probably hear the same story told four or five different ways by different vampires with certain bits added in and a few bits taken out of it. I enjoyed listening to the stories. I was never quite sure which ones were real and which ones were made up. I made up my mind to ask Larten to tell me a few real stories as in ones that he'd actually witnessed or been involved in. Larten was an honest vampire and he'd lived long enough to experience a few things that he could tell me about.**

 **I was getting ready for the second night of the festival, I knew that tonight was more about challenging others to duel than dancing and drinking. I had no idea how to duel, I hadn't been taught how to duel but I could fight hand to hand quite well. I was prepared to have a sparring match in the ring but I wasn't a fighter by nature and I'd had enough of it. I had already faught several vampaneze, I wasn't about to fight my own clan members too. Nevertheless I put my armour on underneath my dress just in case I needed it. I had a small metal plate. It was tied around my body and held in place with leather strapping. The plate covered my back and my chest to protect my vital organs, it was light in weight but very strong. I had no intention of being injured in a sparring match, I had suffered enough injuries already. My arm had healed up well but it was weak, the muscle tone wasn't as good as it had been so I needed to build it up again.**

 **I must have been the hall for about an hour, I was watching the other vampires sparring, they were also challenging one another to duels and single combat matches. I sat and watched from a bench, Larten was nowhere to be seen, Sasha was asleep by my feet and I knew that if I moved then she'd move too. I was happy to watch the matches that were taking place, I wouldn't accept any challenge unless Larten was there to watch me and he wasn't in the hall.**

 **I wondered where Larten was, I figured that he was was doing some duties. I wasn't worried because I knew that he'd come and find me as soon as he was able to. I drunk a mug of mead which was a sweet honey based drink, it was quite alcoholic so one mug was sufficient for me. I threw Sasha a rack of ribs because she was sniffing around the tables and looking for scraps. Nobody really ate ribs because there was very little meat on them, it was mainly bone. Sasha's strong jaws made short work of the ribs, when they were gone I gave her a rolled up piece of lamb. I think it was a loin but I wasn't sure, it kept Sasha quiet. She lay down and ate it slowly, it was like she was enjoying it and she wanted the meat to last longer than it normally did. When Sasha had finished eating she nuzzled me and rested her head on my lap, I stroked her gently and she rubbed her body against me which made my dress hairy but I didn't mind. Sasha suddenly whipped around and snarled, I didn't know why but she was really growling and her fangs were bared.**

 **"What is it?" I asked but Sasha just snarled even more.**

 **"Show me, go find Larten." I commanded so Sasha tugged my cloak and I followed her. I had no idea what was wrong. Sasha led me outside and then she bolted forward, I could just make out a blur of red infront of me, it was Larten. I ran forward too with my sword drawn, I didn't know what to expect and then I saw it. It was the biggest, most vicious looking cougar (mountain lion) that I'd ever seen. Larten was trying to fight it off but it was on top of him, I charged forward and threw rocks at it as a distraction, Sasha was snarling at it.**

 **"Kill." I said and Sasha bounded forward, she grabbed hold of the cougar and ripped into it, the wolf and the cougar went head to head. I helped Larten up, he had been badly scratched and bitten by the cat.**

 **"It isn't normal for a cougar to attack like this." I said.**

 **"No, it is not normal. That cat is either rabid or it has been infected with vampaneze blood. Cats hate us and their blood is toxic so I can understand it growling at me but to attack me like that when I was backing away from it is not a good sign."**

 **I was still watching Sasha and the cougar fighting, Sasha was much bigger than the cougar but the cougar had much sharper claws than Sasha did. Luckily Sasha had a very thick coat so the claws didn't cause much damage, eventually Sasha got her jaws around its throat and that was the end of the cougar.**

 **Sasha came over to me and she yelped, she needed some medical attention and so did Larten. He had to have his wounds cleaned out, Sasha was limping and bleeding a bit so we went directly to the medical wing.**

 **"Larten, what on Earth happened to you?" the Medic on duty asked as we entered the medical wing.**

 **"It was a cougar, the wolf killed it." Larten answered as he removed his torn up shirt to look at his wounds.**

 **"Those wounds need stitches, they'll need to be cleaned out and bandged up as well." the Medic said decisively as he opened up his box of equipment.**

 **"What about Sasha?" I asked,**

 **"I'll examine the wolf after I've fixed up Larten, is she going to let me near her?" the Medic asked me.**

 **"She is pretty good but I'll give her a large bone to chew on as a distraction if it helps you." I suggested.**

 **"I'd rather just tend to her and get her out of here. Animals can cause infections if their hairs are spread around. I'm sure you understand, this is a medical wing and not a vet's office." the Medic replied sternly as he began to clean out Larten's cuts and stitch up the bigger ones. There was no anaesthetic as such but Larten didn't even wince, maybe the herbs that had been rubbed into the wound first had a numbing effect. I knew very little if anything about herbs, I relied upon Larten for all of my medicinal needs.**

 **I looked at Sasha's wounds, they were superficial and only needed to be cleaned out, the blood that was on her must have been from the cougar. I decided to give Sasha a bath in the waterfalls, that way the wounds would be cleaned out and the blood would be washed out of her fur. It also meant that the Medic wouldn't have to deal with a wolf that he knew nothing about.**

 **"Am I OK to go or do you wish me to stay with you?" I asked Larten.**

 **"I shall be alright, I will come and find you as soon as I have been patched up. Go and tend to Sasha, she needs you." Larten replied.**

 **"OK, I'll see you later. Sasha come." I instructed, Sasha stood up and limped over to me. I walked slowly to the waterfalls and I got into one of the pools with Sasha. The blood made the water stained but fresh water was constantly flowing so the bloody water was soon gone. I got out of the pool and dressed myself, I didn't dry Sasha off because she was sore so I left her by a fire to dry naturally. When Sasha was dry I bandaged up Sasha's leg by myself. It wasn't broken but it had been badly sprained and the flesh was torn open. I knew that Sasha would need to rest it so I made her stay on her blankets even when I moved. She whined at me but I stayed firm, Sasha had to stay put or her leg wouldn't heal properly.**

 **"Stay there." I commanded. Sasha looked at me but she didn't move. When I left my quarters Sasha remained on her blankets lying out flat on her side, I went to get her some water as her bowl was empty and she would need some food as well. The fight with the cougar had used a lot of energy so I fed Sasha a whole deer carcass that I found in a storeroom, it was hanging up. It was a small deer but it was more than enough for Sasha, I placed it on the ground and she started to bite into it. The carcass had been gutted but not skinned, it didn't make much difference because Sasha ate the skin anyway. I sat in the coffin beside Sasha whilst she ate, she stood up and ate which was a good sign and when she'd finished I wrapped up what was left and stored it in the coldest room so that it'd stay fresh. I put a label on it that said "MEAT FOR SASHA, DO NOT EAT" Most vampires couldn't read or write so in addition to the written label I drew a wolf's head, then I drew a knife and a fork in a circle with a cross through it as a kind of symbol. I didn't know how else to get the message across but I hoped that the other vampires would understand, they weren't stupid after all.**

 **Larten came and got me when I was in the hall with the rest of the clan, the festival was still continuing and so were the challenges. Larten had changed his shirt and disguarded his old ripped up one. His cloak was also ripped so that too had been thrown on the fire and replaced with another one. We sat down and had a drink, I was tired but I stayed to watch the remaining challenges. Most of the vampires had gone to their quarters and only a few drunken Generals remained in the hall plus Larten and myself. The challenges weren't really proper ones, the Generals were just staggering around and making fools out of themselves. I was laughing a bit but when a drunken brawl broke out between them I took it as my queue to leave and Larten followed me. We didn't want to watch a drunken brawl, it was embarrasing because Generals should know better than to act like that.**

 **I was glad to return to my quarters, I just wanted to rest. Larten had been stitched up and he had bandages wrapped around his waist, he would heal quickly but it was very unusual for cougars to venture this far North. I hoped that it was the only one around for miles. The last thing we needed was cougars in the mountains, we had enough trouble with bears. I was hoping that the cougar wasn't rabid, there was a very real risk of contracting rabies from bites and scratches if saliva from an infected animal went into the wound. If Larten caught rabies it would be lethal, it'd drive him mad first before he'd succumb to it. I hoped and prayed to the Vampire Gods that Larten hadn't contracted the deadly disease, if the cougar had eaten a dead vampaneze or if it had killed a vampaneze and eaten it then the vampaneze blood would have made the cougar mad but not rabid.**

 **I kissed Larten and then I settled down, he put his arms around me which felt nice. I didn't lean into Larten's chest like I normally would because of his wounds so there was a small gap between us. I didn't mind the small gap, however I was used to being as close to Larten as possible so the small gap would take a bit of getting used to.**

 **I turned over onto my side and closed my eyes, although they were closed I was still awake. I slightly adjusted myself because I was a bit uncomfortable but soon I found myself settling down once more and Sasha was asleep next to the coffin.**

 **When I awoke I was a bit stiff. I stretched, got up and dressed myself. Sasha was already awake so I fed her and then I exercised her outside, she was still limping so we weren't outside for long but it was long enough for her to do her business.**

 **I examined the cougar carcass, I was trying to tell if the animal had been rabid or not. I was worried that Larten may have contracted rabies, though he was showing no signs of the disease as of yet which was a relief. I believed that the cougar must have consumed some vampaneze blood, my only question was what were vampaneze doing so close to the mountain? I made the decision that I would raise the issue at the next council meeting after the festival had ended. We didn't want history to repeat itself.**

 **For the moment I put it out of my mind and focussed upon more positive things. I was not quite sure what happened on the last night of the festival but I was sure that it involved more drinking and duelling. Some of the Generals had gotten themselves so drunk the day before that they were still asleep or very hungover. It takes a lot of alcohol to get a vampire drunk. These Generals hadn't only drunk a lot of alcohol they had mixed their drinks too which had made it worse.**

 **I changed into another dress but this one was short and it came above my knees, I wasn't used to wearing short dresses but I wanted something that matched my boots. My boots were high and they covered my shins, a long dress would have covered them up so I chose to wear a dress that showed them off. I looked sexy, what made me look even sexier was the fact that my dress had been cut low so that it made the top of my breasts show.**

 **When Larten saw me he went a bit red, I don't think he was expecting me to look this good.**

 **"I hope that I don't look like a whore." I said.**

 **"You look good enough to devour but I shall control myself." Larten answered, he whispered it in my ear because we were in the hall with everybody else. I helped myself to a small goblet of wine, I didn't like it very much but I didn't like beer or cider either.**

 **Sasha was in our quarters, she was still healing so she had to rest. The hall was far too busy and noisy for her so she was asleep on her blankets. I was worried about her but I tried to enjoy the last night of the festival.**

 **Larten was a very good dancer, I learnt the steps from him so that I didn't make a fool of myself when I danced with him in the hall.**

 **"Anna, would you dance with me?" Gavnur requested when I was sitting down. I looked at Larten as if to ask his permission first.**

 **"Go ahead, I have no objections." Larten commented.**

 **Gavnur held out his hand and I took it, he led me over to where the other couples were dancing and when the next song started we danced together. Gavnur led me, we danced something similar to a Waltz but it was quicker. I enjoyed it very much. At the end of the dance Gavnur led me over to where Larten was, he kissed my hand and then Seba came over to chat with us.**

 **"Good evening all, are you enjoying the festival?" Seba asked us as he poured himself a mug of ale.**

 **"I have had a lot of fun, it is nice to see vampires letting their hair down and enjoying themselves." I answered as I sipped my wine.**

 **"I too have enjoyed the past three evenings except for the cougar attack." Larten added.**

 **"I'm just happy that I haven't got duties to do, normally I am given a long list of General's business to attend to." Gavnur replied.**

 **"The Festival of the Undead is something that I look forward to, three nights of frivolity every twelve years. What is not to like?" Seba pondered.**

 **"It is a shame that certain vampires aren't here to enjoy it with us, the festival just isn't the same without them." Gavnur remarked glumly.**

 **"I agree with you Gavnur, this is the first festival I have attended without Arra. She always loved to dance and she would dance with no-one but I, she refused to dance with anybody else who asked her unless it was a Prince." Larten responded sadly.**

 **"Arra is in Paradise Larten, one night you will join her there but until that time comes do not dwell upon the past, look forward to the future." Seba advised wisely.**

 **"Yes Seba, you are as ever full of good advice." Larten admitted.**

 **"I hope that you don't leave me for a very long time." I said.**

 **"I shall stay with you for as long as I can, I have no intentions of dying any time soon." Larten convinced me.**

 **"I hope not, when you go I shall join you." I told Larten quietly in his ear.**

 **"Enough of the death talk, I'm going to get some more ale." Gavnur remarked as he left to fetch another barrel of ale from the storeroom.**

 **"I too shall go, I wish to challenge Vanez. I told him that I would challenge him so I must keep my word." Seba explained to us as he left our table.**

 **"Larten, are you OK?" I asked.**

 **"Yes I am fine." Larten replied automatically.**

 **"I know that you miss Arra, I can never replace her but she died like a warrior. Arra gave her life for the clan, she was a true vampiress." I commented.**

 **"Yes she was, I do miss Arra and sometimes when I look at you I see her. She would have been proud of you, you have faced many dangers but you have never faltered. You are not afraid to fight and even when you were injured you battled on. I respect you for that." Larten told me.**

 **"You have taught me well." I replied.**

 **"I have indeed taught you how to be a good vampiress, your job is to remember what I have told you. You cannot go wrong if you follow my advice." Larten remarked.**

 **"I do try to please you. I hope that I have done a good job so far." I answered.**

 **"You are doing well, soon you shall be independant of me. We will still be mates but I will no longer have to teach you as my assistant." Larten told me.**

 **"Am I ready to be a vampiress in my own right and not just an assistant?" I asked.**

 **"Yes, soon I shall blood you again and make you a fully blooded clan member. That is a right of passage, when a mentor bloods his or her assistant for the second time it sets them free. They are no longer an assistant and their mentor can then take a new assistant if they wish to." Larten explained to me.**

 **"I do not want you to have another assistant, you'd spend too much time teaching them and I would feel neglected." I responded.**

 **"I would never neglect you, I have no intentions of taking another assistant because I do not wish to become responsible for another misguided youth." Larten concluded.**

 **"Could you imagine if Gavnur took on an assistant?" I laughed.**

 **"Do not remind me, the last time he did that it did not go down well." Larten said, I had a feeling that he was going to tell me another story about Gavnur.**

 **"Tell me what happened please." I pleaded.**

 **"Later on I shall tell you all about it but not here." Larten promised.**

 **"I am looking forward to hearing about it." I replied.**

 **"It was a stressful time for me, Gavnur did not have the time to teach his assistant properly so she had a lot to learn. Gavnur asked me to take over, I had Darren to mentor at the time so I ended up teaching two teenage vampires. I did not mind at first but they developed feelings for one another. As you can imagine it is hard to teach two assistants at once, having two assistants who wanted nothing more than to mate made my task even harder. They did not focus or remember anything I told them, I got very frustrated." Larten explained.**

 **"Did they mate?" I asked, I was curious.**

 **"I believe so, what Prince Darren does in his quarters is not my concern. I do not believe that their mateship lasted very long although I am not sure why." Larten concluded.**

 **"Oh right, what happened to Gavnur's assistant?" I asked.**

 **"I am not certain, I think she came to the council but I have not seen her here." Larten remarked.**

 **"Oh well I'll ask him about it when I see him." I commented.**

 **"Very well, I have not spoken to many people tonight so please excuse me whilst I go and see a few of them." Larten stated as he left my side and I was once again sitting alone at the table. I decided to go and find Gavnur, he would most likely want to dance with me again.**

 **I found Gavnur in the storeroom, he was helping himself to a barrel of mead. He offered me a mugful which I accepted. I liked mead but it was rather strong so one small mugful was enough for me.**

 **"Where is your assistant?" I asked Gavnur between drinking my mead.**

 **"Which one? I have had a few." Gavnur asked.**

 **"The one that Larten taught alongside Prince Darren when you didn't have time to teach her. She was his mate briefly I believe." I answered.**

 **"Oh you mean Jenna, she is here in the mountain. She works in the medical wing so unless you go there you may not see her." Gavnur acknowledged.**

 **"I think I saw her when Larten was having stitches put in after the cougar attacked him, she was mixing up the herbs." I answered.**

 **"That is Jenna, Larten taught her how to mix up herbs and his knowledge was what got her the job. Far more vampires survive now than what they used to, that is thanks to Larten's vast knowledge of herbal remedies." Gavnur told me.**

 **"Larten carries herbs with him, he collects them en route too just in case they are needed." I stated.**

 **"I don't have much knowledge about herbs but I know the basic recipes. I can make soap and I know which herbs dull pain but that is about it." Gavnur concluded.**

 **"That is more than I know, I only know which herbs taste good with meat and fish. Larten has taught me how to kill, prepare, butcher and cook meat. He has taught me how to cook other things too. I am self sufficient and I no longer need him to provide food for me, I can hunt and feed by myself." I acknowledged.**

 **"I would expect nothing less from you or indeed any of Larten's mates." Gavnur stated.**

 **"I've learnt so much, I really miss my cat and my hamster though. I wonder how the Cirque Du Freak is managing without me." I pondered.**

 **"I'm sure that they're fine, after the council has ended Larten will take you back to the Cirque Du Freak, he always returns there. I think the mountain reminds him of Arra and now that she isn't here it hurts him to be here without her." Gavnur confided.**

 **"I understand, I'd be the same if I lost Larten. I'd never want to return to the place where I lost him." I admitted.**

 **"Arra faught like a demon, she killed at least four vampaneze before she was injured. I was lost in the tunnels, I couldn't find my way out. The clan thought that I was dead but they mistook another vampire's corpse for me. I only found my way out after the battle was over, I found a trail of blood. The blood led me to where the fighting had taken place and then I found my way back to the main part of the mountain." Gavnur explained.**

 **"I expect the clan were happy to see you, I would be happy to see somebody alive and well." I presumed.**

 **"My friends were happy to see me, my mate at the time was even happier to see me of course. When I saw her she was wearing a black veil, I can't even explain to you how ecstatic she was when she saw me. She thought she was imagining things at first and that I wasn't actually standing infront of her." Gavnur told me.**

 **"I didn't know that you had a mate." I revealed.**

 **"We are no longer mates, we only had a three year agreement and I would have renewed it but she had a better offer so she chose him over me." Gavnur replied sadly.**

 **"I'm sorry to hear that, if I were single then I'd gladly mate with you. Larten would not approve of our mateship even if I wasn't already his mate. He'd tell me that I can do better." I remarked.**

 **"That sour old buzzard can keep his opinions to himself, I think that we'd match each other rather well." Gavnur stated.**

 **"I agree with you but don't tell Larten or he'll go mad." I responded with a wink. I could be quite a flirt when I wanted to be.**

 **"I love your outfit, you look so hot and if you were my mate we wouldn't be standing here. I'd take you to my quarters and I don't need to tell you the rest." Gavnur whispered in my ear, he too was a flirt.**

 **"Gavnur Purl you are outragious, I am spoken for." I pretended to be shocked but I wasn't really surprised by Gavnur's words. I had been propositioned by a lot of vampires but I turned down every last one of them. I was no cheat. Larten would never forgive me if I cheated on him and if he did the same then I'd never forgive him either.**

 **Larten was also a flirt and quite often I'd see him flirting with other vampiresses, however Larten would never go any further than naughty words or an illicit kiss with other clan members. He only mated with me.**

 **I saw vampiresses entering and exiting our shared quarters all the time but I never mentioned it, I was the only one who slept there. Since Sasha had moved in the visits had reduced in number, I even saw Larten kissing another vampiress once but there was nothing in it. I didn't mind the occasional kiss, it wasn't a full on kiss either so I was chilled out about it. As a matter of fact I had kissed Vanez once or twice, it wasn't intended it just happened. Larten knew about it and he wasn't happy but because I had told him straight away he respected my honesty, he couldn't really complain because he had also kissed people. He wasn't a hypocrite.**

 **During the Festival of the Undead we had become really close to one another, we were closer than we had been previously. I liked our bond. Larten and myself were inseperable and we did almost everything together. Larten had also become more affectionate, I couldn't explain why that was but I wasn't complaining. I liked it when Larten would hold me and kiss me, I liked walking down the tunnels with him holding hands and we had sex frequently. I thought that everything was perfect...**


	18. Chapter 17

**I'm Just a Half Vampiress**

 **Chapter 17**

 **A few nights after the festival was over I was doing my duties as per usual. Tonight I was in the kitchen and my job was to prepare the meat ready for cooking, seeing as I had knowledge of butchery it made sense for me to help out in this way. I didn't mind helping out in the kitchen, it made a change from polishing staves and cleaning the floors in the Halls of Sport. The stone floors in the Halls of Sport were stained with blood, no matter how hard you scrubbed them the stains remained.**

 **I gutted a deer and I cut it into pieces, the meat was cut off of the bones and it went into a large stew pot. The bones went into another pot to make stock and then when the stock was made it was poured over the meat. The meat was then cooked over an open fire, this meal was for the Princes so the kitchen put extra effort into making it taste good. I tried it as it was cooking, I had to taste it in order to judge how much if any seasoning was needed. I added some berries and a dash of port to make the stock richer, I finished it off with some double cream and then it was ready for serving. The meal had taken a while to cook and whatever was left over would come back to the kitchen for us to eat. A perk of cooking for the Princes was that you'd be able to eat what they had eaten if there was any left.**

 **I was hungry and the smells of the food cooking made me even hungrier, I ate some chicken breast that was cooked and I ate a loin of lamb also. I couldn't focus on an empty stomach after all so I ate and cooked at the same time. I nibbled on things to keep me going until I could sit down and eat a proper meal. The loin of lamb wasn't very big, by the time I had cut the fat off it looked even smaller so it was like a snack for me. I ate the meat quickly because I was still working, I had to get the dessert made. Tonight the dessert was mountain berries cooked in red wine and sweetened with honey, there would be enough for everybody who wanted some. I stirred the berries, they had to cook through so that they'd be flavoured with the wine but not alcoholic. I didn't want them to burn on the bottom of the pot either or they'd be ruined. The berries smelt really apetising, I tried a spoonful of them but they were sour so I added a lot of honey to them. The wine had an earthy taste to it with notes of oak so it was too strong for the berries, seeing as I had already used it I decided to add cream as that would balance out the flavours. I continued to let the berries cook down and soak up the creamy wine sauce that I'd made. When I tasted the mixture for the second time it was much better, it was ready to serve so I took the pot off of the heat and let it cool down a bit. I didn't want it to overcook.**

 **I tested the meat in the stew pot for the Princes, it was soft and it tasted really good. I removed the stew pot from the open fire and handed it over to the General who had come to collect it, the Princes had their meals brought to them and they ate in their Dome or in the hall, it was up to them. All of the food was tasted and checked for poison before it was served, after Kurda's betrayal nothing was left to chance.**

 **I couldn't decide what to cook for myself so I cooked a duck and some rabbits, I cut the meat up and placed it inside a dish then I covered the meat in a mixture of port and vegetables and topped it with a pastry lid. I had made a pie, I hoped that by the time it was cooked I would be finished in the kitchen, that way I could eat it in peace without having to get up and stir stuff or chop things up.**

 **The Princes enjoyed their meal, there wasn't any left for us when the pot came back but we could make our own meals. The pie I had made was big enough for three people so I shared it with the chef and Seba. I helped myself to a bowlful of the berries before taking the pot to the hall for the others to eat. Now that the council was almost over a lot of vampires would be leaving the mountain, this meant that there'd be less pressure on the kitchen to feed everybody. A lot of vampires hunted and fed themselves by lighting open fires outside, some preferred to have their food cooked for them and that was why we had a kitchen. We cooked three main meals a night for the clan, food was always available and depending on the time of the year our choices would alter slightly.**

 **I enjoyed living in the mountain but I really missed the Cirque Du Freak. To take my mind off things I decided to go out into the wilderness around the mountain, I wouldn't go far but I wanted to explore unknown territories. I wouldn't go until Sasha was well enough to come with me, I would need her as Larten wouldn't be coming along. We had a row and I decided that we needed some space, it was our second major row in a week so I thought that time apart would do us some good. We had been really close but we disagreed on trivial matters and then Larten wouldn't give in to me, he knew I was right on this occasion but he was stubburn.**

 **I didn't tell Larten that I was leaving. I packed up some of my stuff that was stored in our shared quarters, I chose the items that I'd need to take with me on my little excursion. I took minimal supplies with me because I was only going for a few nights. After our second row I had been sleeping with Sasha in our shared quarters whilst Larten had been sleeping in Seba's quarters.**

 **I didn't like arguements but I wouldn't back down when I knew that I was right, if I was wrong then I'd always hold my hands up but in this instance I wouldn't let it go. I was just as stubburn as Larten could be, I loved him but when we faught like this it was awful. Time apart was the best thing because at this precise moment we weren't talking to one another, we'd make it up eventually but not until Larten admitted that I was right and that he was wrong. In addition to the rows Larten had called me some horrible things and that was what tipped me over the edge, he had no right to say what he had said to me. Larten had really upset me so that was why I had decided to leave for a few nights, I needed to clear my head and Larten needed time to think about what he'd done. Larten could be like a dog with a bone, he wouldn't let anything lie even when he knew that he was wrong.**

 **I had been spending time with Gavnur recently, we ate together, sparred together, hunted together and one time when we had both had a bit too much to drink I allowed Gavnur to share my coffin. I was trying to get back at Larten for calling me those vile names, I wanted him to hurt as much as he had hurt me. A couple of nights before I left the mountain Gavnur and I had spent the whole night together, we were sitting together in the hall and I had my head rested on his shoulder. Gavnur whispered something suggestive in my ear and then he kissed my neck. The kiss came as a surprise but I turned my head and kissed his lips sweetly. That was our first public kiss, it was quite a long one too. I took Gavnur up on his suggestion, we left the hall and went to his quarters.**

 **Gavnur had his quarters in a quiet part of the mountain, nobody was down the tunnel when we walked down towards our destination. Gavnur unlocked the door of his quarters and we entered, it was rather nice inside and I wasn't expecting that. Gavnur had rugs on the floor and a fireplace, torches were lit in each corner of the room and above the coffin that Gavnur slept in. I knew that Vampire Generals had nice accommodation but I didn't know that it was this nice.**

 **"What do you think?" Gavnur asked as he got undressed.**

 **"It is rather nice in here, I hope your coffin is comfortable." I remarked.**

 **"I like it, it is soft and quite well padded in my coffin. I like to relax inside it after a long night of performing General's business." Gavnur replied.**

 **"I couldn't imagine being as busy as you seem to be, even the Cirque Du Freak doesn't work as hard as the Generals do and we have a show to perform." I answered whilst getting myself ready for bed.**

 **"What happens now?" Gavnur asked suggestively.**

 **"Whatever you want to happen will take place, I am laying naked in your coffin." I commented naughtily.**

 **"I would very much like to mate with you." Gavnur admitted.**

 **"I was thinking the same thing, I want to mate with you too." I responded.**

 **"In that case we shall mate." Gavnur concurred with me.**

 **"I am looking forward to this." I told Gavnur.**

 **"May i kiss you please?" Gavnur requested politely.**

 **"Of course you can kiss me, however I hope that Larten won't find out about this or he'll go mad." I acknowledged.**

 **"I won't tell him or anybody else, the hall was deserted when we kissed earlier. Nobody saw it." Gavnur reassured me before he kissed me passionately.**

 **"I never realised until now how good looking you are, your muscles are well defined and you feel so warm." I stated.**

 **"Larten is a powerhouse of pure muscles, I am not as well built as he is but I still know what to do if you get my drift." Gavnur whispered in my ear.**

 **"Yes I get your drift, I'd feel really guilty if I were to cheat on Larten, however seeing as we're on a break at the moment I don't think it matters too much what I do." I answered.**

 **"I agree and if he never knows about it then it is like it never happened, we can enjoy ourselves without feeling guilty about it afterwards." Gavnur remarked.**

 **I kissed Gavnur softly, I was taking things slowly to start with. We kissed for ages, Gavnur was nothing like Larten and it was nice to feel something different for a change. We had sex but it was not animalistic or lustful, it was gentle and it was quiet. I had an orgasm but I kept myself under control and I didn't scream or cry out Gavnur's name. There was no need to go over the top, besides we didn't want to be heard just in case somebody reported back to Larten about what we were doing.**

 **I had a really good time with Gavnur, he made me feel special and he made me feel like he actually cared about me. Larten gave me lots of gifts and we had sex all the time but it wasn't about gifts or sex, I needed something more. I wanted to feel an emotional connection with Larten, I loved him deeply but I needed to know for sure that he felt the same way about me, Larten told me that he loved me but I wasn't sure how much he loved me, Larten said that he'd willingly die to save me too but I hoped that we'd never find ourselves in that kind of situation.**

 **I woke up next to Gavnur, he had his arm around me and my head was on his chest. We were both completely naked. I was surprised that Gavnur wasn't snoring, his lack of snoring meant that I had been able to sleep rather than being kept awake. I got up and got dressed, I didn't want to stay with Gavnur too long in case people started to wonder where we were. As I stepped out of the coffin Gavnur woke up and he stretched.**

 **"What time is it?" Gavnur asked me sleepily.**

 **"No idea, it is time that I left here though in case I am missed. I think I have duties to do and I have to find somebody to fill in for me whilst I'm away." I answered.**

 **"Forget your duties, somebody else will do them. As a General I have the power to give you time off, you can stay in here with me where it is warm." Gavnur said suggestively.**

 **"Thanks but if the clan can't find either of us then it'll look suspicious, I will go and eat breakfast at the very least. I'll come back here before I leave for the wilderness don't worry." I replied.**

 **"Alright then, I'll see you later and if I were you I'd have a shower or you'll smell like me all night long." Gavnur laughed.**

 **"That's a good point, snoring like a bear is one thing but smelling like one is worse." I retorted jokingly.**

 **"Hey, watch what you say. I am still a General." Gavnur chastised me.**

 **"Sorry Gavnur, I was just teasing." I apologised.**

 **"It's OK, I've heard a lot worse in my time." Gavnur acknowledged before he kissed me, Gavnur's kisses were sweet and tender, they weren't a bit like Larten's which were lustful and long lasting. Gavnur liked to take his time, it was as if he was savouring every moment of our time together.**

 **I left Gavnur's quarters and went to the hall where the few remaining vampires were, I grabbed some food and sat down. Sasha was by my feet, she was healing up well and soon she'd be well enough to come with me on my trip into the wilderness.**

 **I saw Larten walk into the hall, I was sitting with Vanez and a couple of others that I didn't know. I finished my food quickly and then I got up to leave the hall.**

 **"Where are you going in such a hurry?" Vanez asked me, he sounded worried.**

 **"I'm getting out of here so that I can avoid Larten." I answered honestly.**

 **"Are you two still not talking to each other?" Vanez asked.**

 **"No, we haven't had any contact since the row. We are living seperately and we're on a break. We may get back together but I don't know when it'll be if at all." I replied.**

 **"That is sad, you are so right for each other. You fit together in my opinion." Vanez claimed.**

 **"I thought that we were right for each other too until we had that huge row, Larten called me some vile names that I shall not repeat." I stated.**

 **"Larten says stuff in anger, he doesn't mean it. We all lose our tempers occasionally." Vanez remarked.**

 **"Yes I understand that but what Larten said was completely uneccessary and vile. It ripped my heart into pieces when I heard those words, it was as though I meant nothing to him at all. If you'll excuse me I must be going before Larten sees me." I concluded before I left the hall.**

 **I went to the waterfalls for a shower, I needed to wash myself. Sasha waited for me, she fetched me a towel and passed it to me when I stepped out of the pool. The water was particularly cold this evening but it was refreshing. I made sure that I changed my clothes and sprayed some perfume on myself. I didn't want to walk around the halls if I still smelt like Gavnur and somebody picked up on it. What happened in Gavnur's quarters was between me and him alone, nobody else needed to know about it.**

 **I went to the Halls of Sport after I had changed my clothes and showered, Sasha came with me. I played tug of war with her using a leg of lamb which she ate quickly, she loved lamb but venison was her favourite meat. When the game was over I grabbed a stave and hopped up onto the Bars, unusually nobody was aloft so I made the most of my time on there to practice my strikes and blocks. I still couldn't duel but I practised the basics and my balance was supreme, the only thing was that whenever I was on the Bars Sasha stood underneath them and barked constantly until I came down again. I don't think she liked the idea of me being up so high, I wasn't up there for long because I had to take Sasha out for a run.**

 **I exited the mountain through a small tunnel entrance, it was an exit that Gavnur had shown me and not many vampires knew about it. I didn't use the main entrances in case Larten was hanging around but I hadn't seen him recently.**

 **I stood outside in the moonlight, the moon was full and the stars shined brighter than usual or they seemed to at least. I walked around the mountain, I liked the fresh air and I loved to stand outside under the stars. Each star represented a vampire in Paradise or so I had been told, by looking at them it was a way of remembering the dead. I looked up to the sky, there were a lot of stars shining so it was hard to pick one. I picked the brightest star I could see and I uttered an old vampiric prayer if it could be called that. It was for Arra. I don't know why I did it, it just felt right. I wished to make my peace with the Gods of the Vampires, I asked them for help to heal the rift between Larten and myself because I couldn't think of anything else to say. When I was through I went back inside the mountain and Sasha followed me.**

 **I was ready to leave for the wilderness. As I was still a half vampire I could travel in the daylight so that's what I had decided to do. The weather was better in the daytime and it was easier to spot danger, also nocturnal carnivores would be sleeping which would make my trip safer. My plan was to do a big circuit of the mountain, camp out in the wilderness beyond the woodland and then return. I'd be hunting and fishing to feed myself along the way and Sasha would also be helping me out.**

 **I packed up my bag, grabbed my weapons and said goodbye to Vanez, Seba and Gavnur. I was happy to be going off on my own, I needed to feel independant and this was an ideal way of getting some space away from the clan and its rules. I exited the hall through another entrance that was not known to many, Seba had told me to use it so I followed his advice. Seba was very wise, he had given me a lot of tips about where to find food and he gave me a lesson that had been all about herbs.**

 **I was carrying some herbs with me but not many, I only carried their leaves, flowers or juice but never the plant in its unprepared format. I had some that'd stop bleeding, something for pain, something to use as a kind of soap and some edible ones that would go well with meat.**

 **Sasha trotted along by my side, sometimes she'd stop and sniff the ground or the air before moving again. I think Sasha was tracking something but I wasn't sure what exactly. It was daytime so not many animals would be out and about, just a few mountain sheep that didn't belong to anybody and the occasional wild horse would pass by but nothing dangerous as of yet.**

 **I had cleared the woodland and now I was walking through a field, well it was very rocky but there were a few grassy patches here and there. I was looking for a place that I could use to set up my base camp. I needed an area of flat, grassy ground that was wide. I also needed to find a place where I could light a fire to cook my meals on and keep wild creatures at bay. Certain carnivores are afraid of fire.**

 **I found the stream that Gavnur had mentioned to me, it was a source of fresh water so I filled up my bottles with it. I boiled some water to cook with, it was lunchtime and I didn't have much choice when it came to food. I cooked some fruit down until it was soft, I added some oats, honey and nuts to it and then cooked it through gently. I had made a fruity porridge. I let it cool down before I scooped it into a special flask. It'd keep for ages in an airtight flask, the antibacterial properties of honey acted like a natural preservative. That was my breakfast sorted for the next few days, but what to have for lunch? I couldn't make up my mind so I went down river until I came to a large waterfall, the waterfall was cascading over the mountain and collecting at the bottom of a chasm. I knew that there'd be a way down there, I had to go down there because there were salmon in the pool at the bottom. The salmon were huge and one fish could potentially feed both me and Sasha, the trick was catching them. I had a rough idea of what to do but it'd take skill, I wasn't sure if I had the speed to pull it off. My idea was to enter the pool in one of the shallower parts and stand there until a salmon swam past me, I'd use my supreme speed and keen eyesight to catch it. I'd throw it to Sasha and then I'd catch another one for myself. I wanted my fish to be cooked and prepared properly rather than eating it raw. Sasha on the other hand would eat her fish raw whilst it was still whole.**

 **I stepped into the pool, it was much deeper than I had first imagined and the current was fast. I found a flat rock to stand on, it looked like a stepping stone. The rock was big enough for me to stand on and the water flowed around it rather than over it. I stood on the rock and waited, Sasha stayed at the edge of the pool, she was yapping because she wanted me to throw her a fish.**

 **I used my superior eyesight to scan the water, I was looking for the salmon. There were hundreds of fish but none of them were swimming past the stepping stone that I was perched upon. All of a sudden I caught sight of a fish that was swimming towards me, I waited until it was closer and then I struck like lightning. I grabbed the salmon from the water and tossed it to Sasha who caught it, she shook it from side to side in her mouth until it was dead. I managed to catch another two fish, they were smaller than the first one that I had caught. I gutted them and cut their heads off, then I filleted the fish so that they'd be ready for cooking. I cooked them in a flat pan over some hot rocks that were a part of the fire I'd lit. I used some oil and herbs too so that the fish wouldn't stick to the pan and burn. I was looking forward to eating them, I was hungry and cold. Sasha had gulped hers down and now she wanted a drink, I poured some water into another pan for her to drink. Sasha wouldn't drink from the pool because the water was too cold for her, other wolves would not drink from really cold water either. The reason for this is that if you drink a cold drink your body temperature drops, when you are outside in the wilderness it is better to stay warm so drinking icy water is not a good idea.**

 **I finished cooking the fish and served it up on a plate, I was really hungry by this point. I had eaten a few nuts but they were a snack. I ate the fish quickly and I had some warm water to drink, I had heated it up over the fire. When I had finished eating I moved on, it was still light outside. I wanted to travel as far as I could during the daytime before the nocturnal predators became active. Sasha trotted beside me, sometimes she'd go infront of me and other times she'd stop and turn her head to look behind me. Sasha was a good companion to have around, her wild instincts had kicked in and she needed to roam. Wolves roam for miles so going on a journey like this was normal for Sasha. We crossed the rocky ground and then we entered the wilderness itself. There was a path to follow that had been laid down a few hundred years ago. We didn't have to follow it but it was the best way through the wilderness, the path would take us on flat, grass covered ground only which would give my sore feet a rest. I had been walking on hard, rocky ground before.**

 **My plan was to camp out here for a few nights, I had decided to build a shelter up in the trees. I wasn't likely to be attacked by a wild animal if they couldn't reach me. Sasha would have to sleep at the foot of the tree, however when I examined the trees they were very tall but they didn't have any useful branches on them. I scrapped the idea of building a shelter in a tree but instead I had another idea. I would camouflage the shelter so that it couldn't be found, I'd disguise the entrance to it as well.**

 **My job was to find a deserted cave or a place where tall plants were growing. If there was an area of flat ground that was surrounded by plants then that would be ideal. The plants would hide the shelter if they were tall enough. You can't see through plants after all. My other option was to find a cave and disguise the entrance to it, seeing as I had stumbled upon a small, deserted cave I decided to use it. I used branches covered in leaves to block up one of the entrances, I concealed the other entrance so that it wasn't visible. Anybody who was walking past would only see a big rock covered in plants, hopefully no-one would discover my sleeping place by exploring the rock more closely.**

 **It was still light outside by the time I had finished disguising the cave entrance, it was a bit overcast and it looked like it was going to rain. I didn't much fancy walking in the rain so I went inside the cave and settled in. It was rather warm in there, warmer than I had expected but I still used fur covers on the floor of the cave to sit on. It was either that or I would have to sit directly on the mucky, damp ground. I made my bed up out of more fur covers, I had one to lay upon and I rested my head on Sasha, she didn't mind me using her shoulder as a pillow. I wasn't going to be sleeping yet but I wanted to stay warm and comfortable whilst I waited for the storm to pass. I could hear the gusts of wind and the rain, luckily the branches I had placed infront of the entrance made a good barrier against the worst of the weather. I sat inside the cave, it was dark but I could see what was around me.**

 **The storm raged for what seemed like hours, the rain was really hard and had I left the cave I would have been soaked right through to the skin. Sasha was used to the rain, her thick coat had a waterproof top layer and a warmer, fluffier layer beneath her waterproof top coat. Despite the weather outside Sasha would be able to stay dry. I let her outside because she was whimpering, I stayed within the cave because my clothing was not waterproof, the vampire blood in my veins kept me warm but that was it.**

 **Sasha was gone for quite a while but eventually she returned with a small deer. She dragged it inside the cave and ate her share, I had some as well because I didn't want to waste any opportunities to eat fresh meat which was packed with iron and protein.**

 **Eventually the rain eased off and then stopped but by now it was dark and cloudy, the moon was obscured behind the clouds and so were the stars. I decided to stay in the cave and then I'd move on when it was dawn. I had a large area of wilderness to cover before I returned to the mountain.**

 **I wasn't planning to make up with Larten either, at least not straight away. I was seriously considering finishing it with him and moving on. Gavnur was a candidate and so was Prince Vancha but I'd have to wait and see. For now I was happy to explore the wilderness and be free to do as I pleased without any boundaries.**

 **When the dawn broke and I could hear the birds singing I got up and packed away my belongings. It was time for us to move on, I just hoped that the weather would be ok. It didn't matter if the sky was grey and overcast as long as it was not raining, snowing or bright sunlight. I was looking forward to seeing the rest of what the wilderness had to offer, it was a large open space where humans rarely went and vampires were few and far between.**

 **I was happy to have Sasha by my side, she was a great companion for me and our bond now was incredible. Travelling through the wilderness with a wolf was much safer than going it alone, I was still half human so I had to be careful. I stuck to the main path and I kept my wits sharp. Every sound and every scent told me what had been or what was coming up, I listened to the birds in case they started to make alarm calls which could warn me about any potential dangers. The birds were perched up in the trees and they could see preditors coming, nine times out of ten the birds would sound their alarm calls even if what they saw wasn't actually dangerous. I still kept an eye out for anything though just in case I did meet a wild creature that wasn't vegetarian.**

 **In the wilderness I was most likely to see bears, wild cats and a few deer but occasionally you'd get the odd red squirrel or maybe a weasel. Rabbits and gamebirds like grouse were abundent so at least I wouldn't starve. I preferred deer because they were large enough to get more than one meal from them.**

 **Right now food was not on my agenda, my aim was to get as far away from the mountain as I could. I didn't really want to meet anybody, I wanted to enjoy some time to myself so that I could clear my head, I needed to think about my relationship and whether it was worth continuing or not. I loved Larten but I didn't like his stubburness or his attitude, when he and I faught it was nasty. There was one fight in which Larten had half drawn his sword on me, that scared me and at that point I started to question whether Larten was right for me after all.**

 **I continued my trek through the wilderness. I had no idea where I was heading for exactly, I was just happy to be out and about. Sasha trotted along beside me, I think that she was enjoying the trek as much as I was. Sasha also acted as an additional pair of eyes and ears too which was useful. Not only that but Sasha was an avid hunter and without her help I wouldn't have had many successful hunts. Things were going well for us but then our adventure took a dramatic turn for the worst...**


	19. Chapter 18

**I'm Just a Half Vampiress**

 **Chapter 18**

 **Sasha and I continued on our adventure, we decided to go through an area of woodland because there was a path that led through the trees. The trees would provide us with cover and shelter when we needed to rest. There was also a chance of meeting other wolves which would be good for Sasha. The other reason why I decided to go through the trees was because quite often you find more food in the woodland. Nuts, berries and different prey animals would be available in the woodland but not necessarily in the exposed areas of wilderness. This meant that potentially we'd be able to eat bigger meals. Sasha and I could eat quite a bit so larger meals would suit us well.**

 **I was enjoying my adventure in the wilderness but I knew that soon I'd have to return to the mountain, I had brought Sasha out here so that she could meet a male wolf, I thought that she'd like to have a litter and I'd love to see the look on Larten's face when our shared quarters were turned into a wolf den. I still hadn't forgiven Larten because of what he'd said to me, however I knew that I'd have to speak with him eventually because he was my mate. Despite everything that had happened between us I still loved Larten very much, I remembered all the good times that we'd shared together and I also missed sleeping next to him with his cloak wrapped around me.**

 **I thought very carefully about which path to take back to the mountain because there were several paths that were available to Sasha and I, I wasn't sure if she'd mated or not but there had been a few lone male wolves hanging around where we'd been walking, usually only the dominant male and female in a pack mate so I wasn't sure exactly how it'd work out. Wolf pregnancies last between fifty nine and sixty three days, if Sasha was pregnant I'd soon know about it. There was one male wolf who refused to stop following us, he was a black wolf and he stuck to me like glue, hence why I named him Shadow. I was more sure than not that Sasha and Shadow were mates, I wasn't sure how the clan would react to having a wolf pack living within the mountain. If the worst came to the worst I'd build an enclosure with a flap so that Sasha and her pack could live outside but have an indoor den to sleep in.**

 **I found myself in an unfamiliar part of the woodland that I hadn't walked through before, the weather was changing too. I was sure that I knew the way back to the mountain, I hadn't brought a map with me because I hadn't intended to go very far but with each step I took it felt wrong somehow. I turned around and went back the other way but even then I still couldn't figure out which way to go. I was lost!**

 **I tried to locate a familiar landmark or a prelaid path but there were none, the path I had been on was not one that I wished to follow, it was a very long path that had been made for running around so by following it I'd be going around in a circle.**

 **I instinctively went up higher thinking that I'd find another entrance to the mountain but the weather made the rocks icy, I paid the price for choosing the wrong rock to step on. I slipped over, tumbled down the rocks and straight over the edge of a cliff. I landed on an outcrop rather than plunging to my death but my leg had been damaged and I couldn't move it. The wolves both stood at the edge of the cliff looking down at me and yapping, Sasha was going nuts and howling like a banshee. Shadow was yapping a lot too, I knew that they wanted to help me but I wasn't sure how they could help me. The fall had damaged my back as well, I was trapped and I didn't know if I was going to be rescued or not. I didn't know what to do, Sasha was still howling and going nuts. I think she was trying to call other wolves in the area, then I remembered something that I'd taught Sasha to do back when I first got her. I'd trained her to run and get Larten just in case anything serious ever happened. Right now Sasha was my only hope of survival, I just hoped that she remembered her training. I called up to Sasha, I wasn't sure if she could hear me or not.**

 **"Sasha, go find Larten." I called out weakly. Sasha didn't respond at first, so I repeated the command as loudly as I could.**

 **"Sasha, go find Larten." this time I saw Sasha disappear so maybe she had heard my command. I could still see Shadow at the edge of the cliff. I could barely move, I thought that I was badly injured. I closed my eyes and lay still, I was conserving energy but I was cold. I had no shelter around me and I was exposed to the elements. I don't know how long I lay there for, it seemed like an eternity...**

 **I thought I heard voices in the distance, maybe I was delusional, maybe I was sick as well as injured. The only thing I knew for sure was that if Sasha didn't come back soon then I was going to die here on this outcrop and the birds would pick my bones clean. If I was going to die then at least I would die outside in the wilderness instead of in a coffin, most vampires like to die outside fighting a wild animal or on the battlefield rather than dying in their sleep. I imagined what Vampire Paradise would be like, I thought about an endless supply of blood, I imagined being reunited with my dead friends, I imagined the Gods of the Vampires welcoming me and I imagined myself watching over the other vampires who were still alive. I even thought about haunting Larten's quarters, I smiled to myself because it seemed humourous at the time.**

 **I could feel my body shutting down, if rescue didn't come soon then I would be done for. I remembered how I'd been rescued from the river by a wolf, I remembered the first time that I had slept with Larten, I remembered him kissing me and making me cry out his name when he made me have an orgasm. I remembered how he had blooded me and how I always slept in his arms, if he came to save my life now then I'd owe him everything and our prior arguments would be forgotten.**

 **I slipped in and out of consciousness, I was not really aware of my surroundings at all. I could still hear and see things but I didn't know if they were real or just figments of my imagination.**

 **I heard distant howling, the howling got louder and then I was sure that I heard footsteps and voices, was this a team of vampires coming to rescue me? I didn't know what it was, I just lay still and made as much noise as I could, that way if anybody was coming to rescue me then they'd hear me and they'd be able to locate me.**

 **"Help, somebody please help me. I'm down here and I'm trapped. I cannot move." I called out desperately with as clear a voice as I could muster.**

 **Just as that moment I saw a familiar looking wolf, it was Sasha and she had returned to me. She started yapping and going crazy, she was running back and forth howling like mad. It was as though she was trying to signal to somebody that she'd found what she'd been searching for. I'd trained her to do it and I recognised her behaviour, was I about to be rescued? Was this really happening or was I only hallucinating? I wasn't sure but I called out again for help only this time I got an answer.**

 **"Anna, hold on we are coming to rescue you." I heard a voice call back to me.**

 **"I cannot move, my leg and back are injured. Who is up there?" I shouted back.**

 **"It is Seba, Gavnur, Larten, your wolves and Prince Mika Ver Leth. We are coming down to get you, you are safe now." I heard Seba call down to me, I could see him now as he was standing by the edge of the cliff. I could just about make out the faces of the rescue party, I was weak and I hadn't fed for ages so my eyesight was not as sharp as it usually was.**

 **When I saw Larten I used what strength I had to make a heart symbol with my hands, he saw it and he made the same symbol in reply to me. I saw Gavnur appear, I think it was him I'm not sure. I saw a rope being dropped over the side of the cliff, they were setting things up in order to rescue me. As soon as the rope had been dropped I watched Prince Mika climb down it, then Larten climbed down after him until they were beside me. Larten threw the rope back up and one of the others caught it,**

 **"What is the plan?" I asked weakly.**

 **"Gavnur is attaching a stretcher to the rope, it will be lowered down here, you will be placed on it and pulled up to the top. Then we will climb back up and carry you to the medical wing." Larten explained.**

 **"Why do you both need to be down here?" I asked.**

 **"We have to catch the stretcher and it is safer if we both move you, that way we shall minimise the risk of injuring you further. How did you fall down here?" Prince Mika enquired after explaining the rescue.**

 **"I slipped on an icy rock and I went tumbling over the edge, this outcrop broke my fall." I replied weakly, I felt dizzy and sick. I watched as Prince Mika and Larten caught the stretcher that Gavnur was lowering down to where I was. Both Prince Mika and Larten scooped me up very carefully and they placed me on the stretcher, Gavnur and Seba pulled on the rope and I was lifted back up the side of the cliff. When I was safe Larten, Gavnur, Prince Mika and Seba all took one corner of the stretcher and they carried me back to the mountain, the wolves refused to leave my side even when I was in my medical bay.**

 **"I see that we have another wolf to take care of now." Larten commented, to which I replied;**

 **"Yes, the black one is called Shadow. He's Sasha's mate I believe so we may have some wolf pups on the way but I'm not certain of this."**

 **"More wolves? We are not running a zoo." Larten snapped.**

 **"These wolves saved my life and they will not leave my side." I answered simply.**

 **"No, they will not leave your side for anything. Wolves are loyal if nothing else, to them we are their pack and to us they are our blood cousins." Larten acknowledged.**

 **"I've missed you so much, if not for you I'd be stuck on that outcrop still." I said to Sasha as I stroked her lovingly, she nuzzled me and lay down on the floor beside me.**

 **"Have you missed me at all?" Larten asked me.**

 **"I have missed you a lot, thank you for coming to rescue me." I replied, Larten was sitting in a chair beside my medical bay hammock.**

 **"When your wolf came up to me and nudged me I knew that something was wrong, she refused to stop nudging me and tugging on my clothing until I followed her. I quickly put together a search party and that wolf led us right to you, I am sorry for what I said to you before you left. I should never have said such things to you. I feel responsible because if that argument had not taken place then you would not have left the mountain, you would not have slipped and tumbled onto that outcrop either." Larten said apologetically.**

 **"I was planning to leave anyway because wolves like to roam, it is good for both of my wolves to be exercised and allowed to roam long distances. I accept your apology, we should forget about the past and look forward to our future." I remarked.**

 **"I agree with you, we must forget about our prior troubles and move on together, we are still mates and our term is not yet at an end." Larten responded.**

 **"Is that all it is to you? Am I just a time period that you're stuck with?" I asked, Larten's words had hurt me.**

 **"No of course not, I only meant that we should make the most of our remaining time. Arguing all the time will not make for a very pleasant mateship. I want to make this term successful so that when it is over we can reinstate it. We could always make our current term permenant, however that decision is yours to make." Larten explained.**

 **"I understand what you are saying and I will think about it very carefully." I stated.**

 **The medic came to assess my injuries, I believed that they were going to be bad. I had been exposed to the elements, I had landed on my back and I had twisted my leg awkwardly. I was expecting to hear the words broken leg, fractured vertebrae and bruising and that was being optimistic. I had survived being stabbed and being plunged into a freezing, fast flowing river but falling twenty or thirty feet down a cliff edge had to have done some damage. Vampires are tough but not indestructable, a human wouldn't have survived landing on the outcrop, I was lucky to be alive. Once again my vampire blood had prevented my death, either that or it wasn't my time to go. Had I just been saved by** _ **destiny?**_ **I didn't know the exact answer but I was happy to be alive.**

 **"How bad is it?" I asked the medic, I was concerned.**

 **"You've escaped with nothing more than a couple of broken ribs, some fractured vertebrae and a damaged knee. It is dislocated but I don't think it is broken so I can set it for you, you'll have to wear a cylinder cast on it but the rest of your broken bones will heal on their own, I cannot do anything for broken ribs and fractured vertebrae." the medic announced.**

 **"How did I survive? I fell a long way down." I asked, I was surprised that my injuries weren't as severe as I'd thought they'd be.**

 **"The luck of the vampires was with you, yes you're injured but it could have been much worse." The medic responded before he gave my knee a twist to put it back into the correct place. I cried out in pain but I knew that it had to be done, my knee didn't feel so bad once it was back in the right position. My legs were stiff and I was still weak, I needed to eat but more importantly I needed to feed.**

 **"I need to feed, I'm weak and my vision is blurred." I said to Larten.**

 **"I will go and get you some fresh blood. You sound like you need it." Larten responded before he vanished in a blur. I had almost forgotten how quickly he could move.**

 **"Am I allowed to eat and drink?" I asked the medic.**

 **"Of course you are allowed to eat and drink, you're injured but you aren't sick. You need to keep your energy levels up so that you'll heal quicker. You should stay here until you are strong enough to walk, your knee will be stiff but it will heal. I've put a cast on it, if you wish to move around then do so but just take it steady, you may need crutches initially but you'll make a full recovery." The medic replied before he left to tend to his other patients.**

 **Larten returned moments later with a bowlful of soup and a mug of warm blood, I drank the blood without any hesitation, I ate the soup and afterwards I felt better, my stomach wasn't hurting any longer and it had stopped making gurgling noises.**

 **"How are you feeling?" Larten asked me, I could tell that he genuinely cared about me.**

 **"I'm feeling weak, sore and stiff but the medic says I'll make a full recovery." I replied.**

 **"I am happy to hear it, I was worried about you. When I saw you laying on that outcrop barely able to move I thought I was going to lose you, I came as quickly as I could. I knew that you were in a bad way when I saw you, the thing that gave me hope was when you made that heart symbol with your hands. That action told me that you were not ready to give up and that I had got to you in time." Larten remarked.**

 **"The whole rescue team got to me in time, it was not just you Larten. Could you go and get Prince Mika, Seba and Gavnur? I want to thank them for saving my life." I stated.**

 **"I can do that for you, I am sure that they are wondering if you are going to be OK or not." Larten replied as he once again vanished in a blur of red.**

 **I lay back in my hammock and relaxed, I was tired but at least now I was safe and warm. My wolves were guarding me so I was never left alone. I stroked them both, it made me feel better knowing that they were by my side. I heard voices and footsteps outside my medical bay, then Larten entered followed by Seba and Gavnur but Prince Mika was not in attendance.**

 **"Hi, thanks for rescuing me. I thought I was going to die down there." I said to both Gavnur and Seba.**

 **"Your wolf led us right to you, she knew that you were in trouble." Seba replied as he gave Sasha a big bone to gnaw on, he gave one to Shadow also.**

 **"Thank you for feeding the wolves, I forgot to ask Larten to bring something for them." I told Seba.**

 **"I'm glad you're safe Anna, I would hate to lose another friend and especially one who means a lot to me." Gavnur remarked before he hugged me.**

 **"Gavnur, I am very sore. I have fractured vertebrae so hugs aren't the best idea right now." I replied with a wince.**

 **"Oh, sorry. I don't want to hurt you." Gavnur said as he very gently let go of me.**

 **"I appreciate the sentiment though." I commented with a smile in Gavnur's direction.**

 **"Have you two made up yet?" Seba asked me directly.**

 **"We have talked things through, that is all." I answered honestly.**

 **"I see, I hope that you will continue with your mateship term because I have seen how you look at each other, I know when two vampires are in love. It does not happen very often but when it does and two vampires bond in the way that you have bonded you can tell that they are meant to be together." Seba concluded.**

 **"Where is Prince Mika?" I asked, it was my way of changing the subject.**

 **"He has business in the Prince's Dome but he will come and visit you later." Gavnur answered.**

 **"Oh OK, that is good to know." I remarked.**

 **"I'll stay with you if you like, I have nothing to attend to that can't wait until later." Gavnur offered.**

 **"I must be going Anna, the work of a quartermaster is never done." Seba announced before he vanished in a blur.**

 **"Thank you for offering to stay with me Gavnur, I like company." I said.**

 **"You have me for company, I am not going anywhere Anna." Larten stated.**

 **"I like spending time with both of you, is there a problem Larten?" I asked directly.**

 **"There is no problem, I just wanted to be alone with you for a while." Larten admitted.**

 **"Oh, well in that case Gavnur would you please give us some time to ourselves?" I asked politely.**

 **"Of course I will, I can come and visit you tomorrow. It is only natural that Larten wishes to spend time with you alone, you are his mate after all." Gavnur replied as he stood up to leave.**

 **"Bye Gavnur, I'll catch up with you soon." I said to Gavnur before he left.**

 **Once more I found myself alone with Larten, I stretched out my hand and Larten held onto it, then he leant over and kissed me. I hadn't kissed anybody in a while, Gavnur was the last person I kissed, his kisses were so sweet and there were plenty of them too. I had received many kisses from Gavnur, kissing Larten was different because he was more intense and he liked to dominate me. Gavnur, on the other hand was much gentler and he preferred to take things slow.**

 **I kissed Larten back and I tried to put all thoughts of Gavnur out of my mind, it wasn't as easy as it seemed. Even when Larten and I were making out with full on tongues I couldn't focus on him, Gavnur had done a number on me and now I** _ **wanted him.**_ **...**

 **I knew that it was wrong to feel this way about Gavnur, he was Larten's best friend but I couldn't help it. You don't choose when you fall in love with somebody, it just happens. I debated long and hard with myself as to whether it was right to tell Larten the truth about my feelings, I wanted to tell him but I was afraid of what his reaction would be. I also needed to tell Larten about my illicit encounter with Gavnur, I couldn't hide it from him forever.**

 **I was in turmoil, I broke away from Larten because we had been kissing for quite a while. It wasn't as though I didn't enjoy kissing Larten, I just needed to get things off my chest and admit to my mistakes.**

 **"Larten I have to be honest with you, when we had our big argument and we seperated from each other I spent the day with Gavnur in his quarters. I had sex with Gavnur and for that I can only apologise, at the time I was angry with you, I was mixed up and confused. I thought that it wouldn't matter because we were separated but I wanted to admit my mistake to you." I revealed.**

 **"I will not pretend to be happy about this revelation because I am not, I do however understand your reasoning behind it and you have been honest enough to admit it to me. I will not hold it against you because I acted poorly towards you, I said things that are unforgivable and it was only natural for you to seek affection elsewhere." Larten acknowledged.**

 **"I thank you for being so understanding however there appears to be a problem, for some unknown reason I have developed feelings for Gavnur that will not seem to fade." I confessed.**

 **"I cannot force you to stay with me, if you wish to end our term of mateship then that is your choice Anna. I love you but if you are in any way unhappy with me then do not stay with me." Larten replied.**

 **"I am happy to be your mate, you have given me more than what anybody else has, we have been together for a long time and we have been through a lot as a couple. We share a bond that nobody can break apart, when I was stuck on that outcrop the only thing I wanted more than being rescued was to have your cloak wrapped around me again." I concluded, I felt better now that I had told Larten the truth. It was like having a weight lifted from my shoulders.**

 **I still loved Larten very much but my love for him wasn't as intense as it used to be, this was because I had feelings for Gavnur and I wasn't sure if these feelings would go away or develop even deeper.**

 **I didn't want to leave Larten because the sex was just too good, when we were having a high point in our mateship we would have sex frequently. When we had low points and lets face it every couple has low points we didn't have sex at all, sometimes it was so bad that we wouldn't speak to each other. When things were this bad between us I would avoid having any contact with Larten in case we argued again.**

 **At the moment things were not brilliant between us, I was hoping to get our mateship back on track but it was going to take some time. At least Larten was aware of how I felt about Gavnur, I couldn't have kept it a secret from him because it wouldn't have been fair to do such a thing.**

 **Larten stayed in my medical bay for ages, he told me that he wouldn't leave my side but I didn't think that he meant it literally.**

 **"When Gavnur comes to visit me later can you leave us alone to talk please? I will find it easier to talk to him if you're not here." I asked Larten, I was a bit afraid of what his answer would be.**

 **"I would rather not leave you alone together because of what you have told me, I do however understand your point of view." Larten replied.**

 **"Please do this for me Larten, you can trust me. I'd never deliberately do anything that would jeopardise our mateship." I pleaded convincingly.**

 **"I did not mean to doubt you, I know that you will stay faithful to me. I have made a couple of indescretions myself but we were separated at the time so they do not count." Larten confessed.**

 **"In that case we are even, can we put all of this behind us and start afresh from this point onwards?" I asked, I was trying to put things right.**

 **"I think that would be a wise idea. I do not wish to end our mateship, I agree with what Seba said about us and the bond that we share." Larten declared.**

 **"Does this mean that our mateship has been reinstated?" I queried.**

 **"If that is what you want then I accept it, it is my fault for putting us into this position in the first instance." Larten admitted.**

 **I turned myself slightly and I made myself more comfortable, my back twinged a bit but that was to be expected. My leg felt like a dead weight because of the cast that I had on it.**

 **"Come closer to me if you can my love, I have not been close to you in a long time." I said to Larten.**

 **"If I go and ask for a bigger hammock then I can sit in it and you can snuggle into me if you so desire." Larten suggested as he stood up to go and ask one of the medics for a wider hammock. Larten returned a few minutes later with a much wider hammock that was obviously meant for two people. Larten set up the new hammock and then he helped me to get into it, he had to lift me out of the small hammock and put me into the larger one. Larten then returned the small hammock to one of the medics in case it was needed by somebody else.**

 **I lay down in the much bigger hammock and Larten got into it too, he sat up and then he assisted me because I was trying to get comfortable. Moving when you have fractured vertebrae is quite painful as you can imagine. I managed to get myself comfortable eventually and then one of the medics came in into my bay to check on me.**

 **"Hi, how are you feeling?" The medic asked me as he gently ran his fingers down my spine which made me wince.**

 **"I'm still quite stiff and my back hurts, have you got any pain relievers at all?" I asked.**

 **"I can make you something that you can apply to the sore parts, it soaks into the skin and stops the pain. It is like a patch that you apply to the affected areas." The medic explained to me.**

 **"That sounds ideal, it is my back that is giving me the most trouble, the rest of my body is ok at the moment except for my stiff knee of course." I responded.**

 **"I can make a patch and apply it to your spine, it should last for quite a while too. They have a high success rate and they are a popular choice for injuries such as yours." The medic told me.**

 **"Can you go and make me one then please?" I asked, I was in a lot of pain but I refused to show it. Vampires don't complain about pain or they're seen as weak. I would have asked for pain relief sooner but I was trying to battle through as best as I could without anything.**

 **"I see that Larten has been keeping you company, I don't have a problem with it but I don't want to hear or see any funny business going on." The medic said sternly as he ground up the herbs and ingridients that were needed for my pain relieving patch.**

 **"I can barely move, I am in no fit shape to do anything like that right now. I'd never do anything in public either, it isn't appropriate." I replied reassuringly.**

 **"I am glad to hear it, believe me I've heard and seen a lot of things in this medical wing including full on mating. Some vampires cannot control themselves whether they are injured or not." The medic remarked.**

 **"We would never do anything like that, we have respect for this place and we can control ourselves." I answered honestly.**

 **"Your patch is ready, can you turn onto your front please so that I can place the patch on your spine?" The medic asked me.**

 **"I cannot move so easily on my own." I stated, Larten gently lifted me up and placed me onto my front, then he lifted up my shirt so that the Medic could put the patch in the right place.**

 **"Thank you for your help." I said to the medic just before he left my medical bay. I could feel the patch working, my back didn't feel as sore but I was still stiff and my ribs were hurting a bit also.**

 **I sat up and I tried to keep my back straight, too much movement would damage the fractured vertebrae in my spine. I snuggled into Larten, he wrapped his cloak around me and I stayed there for ages, I had missed spending time with Larten like this and I was rather comfortable which was a good thing. I shut my eyes, I didn't completely go to sleep but I took the opportunity to rest.**

 **When I opened my eyes again I was still snuggled up close to Larten, I felt safe whenever I was close to him. We were still snuggled up together when Gavnur arrived, I had completely forgotten about his visit. When Gavnur came into my medical bay and he saw me snuggled up with Larten it made me blush furiously.**

 **"Ahem." Gavnur coughed, I was still blushing a lot.**

 **"Hello Gavnur, thanks for coming to visit me." I said by way of a greeting.**

 **"Aww, you two look so cute like that. I'll come back later if you like, I don't want to disturb you." Gavnur replied with a grin.**

 **"Gavnur Purl I am not cute!" Larten snapped, Gavnur knew how to wind Larten up and it was funny to watch.**

 **"I don't know how you can stand to be with this sour old buzzard, I'm much better looking than Larten." Gavnur boasted before he burst out laughing.**

 **"If you make another sound I will rip your throat out Gavnur Purl, I have had just about enough of your behaviour." Larten said angrily, he sounded like he meant to carry out his threat too.**

 **"That's enough Gavnur, the medic will throw you out if you can't keep the noise down." I chastised Gavnur, I didn't want a fight breaking out between Gavnur and Larten. I think that Gavnur had enjoyed a few mugs of ale before he came to visit me, his drunken comments were funny but I didn't want him to wind Larten up too much.**

 **"Is there a problem here?" One of the medics asked me.**

 **"No, Gavnur was just having a laugh. I think he's been drinking." I replied.**

 **"Keep the noise down, we've got sick vampires in here and the last thing they need is to hear your sarcasm Gavnur." The medic replied as he shot a glance in Gavnur's direction.**

 **"I'm sorry. I only said that Larten and his mate look cute when they're snuggled up together, it didn't go down very well." Gavnur explained.**

 **"I don't care what was said just keep the noise levels down, is that clear?" The medic repeated.**

 **"I'll keep my sarcastic humour to myself." Gavnur said, he looked a bit down in the dumps.**

 **The medic disappeared and Gavnur took a seat on the visitors chair. Larten and I were still snuggled into one another, it was pretty cute but I didn't say anything.**

 **"Larten, I need to speak to Gavnur on my own about what we've already discussed." I stated.**

 **"Very well, I shall leave you alone. Mark my words Gavnur Purl if you ever put a hand on my mate again you are dead meat." Larten clarified, he wasn't joking either. Larten vanished in a blur leaving Gavnur and I in the medical bay along with my two wolves.**

 **"Larten is very possessive isn't he?" Gavnur remarked, he sounded concerned.**

 **"He is just doing what any mate would do, he is defending his claim. He sees you as a rival when it comes to me." I explained.**

 **"Me, a rival? I haven't got a cat's chance in hell of being your mate. You've made your choice already." Gavnur remarked.**

 **"Yes, I have made my choice and it was a wise choice. Larten gives me everything I could wish for and he's a very protective but caring vampire, you try finding a vampire who is protective but also loving and generous, Larten is all of these things and what's more he knows how to satisfy a woman, not very many if any vampires can be all of these things at once but Larten is and that's why we're together." I concluded.**

 **"Anna, I also have all of the attributes that you've mentioned. I am loving and kind, I can also be very protective over those who I care about and you know that I too am a good lover." Gavnur remarked sadly.**

 **"I know that you also have these attributes. I respect and admire you Gavnur, I do have feelings for you but I'm in love with Larten. I can't change how I feel about him. I must tell you one more thing that is just between us; I agree that Larten and I make a cute couple." I said with a slight grin.**

 **"Is there any hope for me at all?" Gavnur asked me.**

 **"There is somebody out there for everybody Gavnur, all you need is a mate who has better taste in underwear than Liz does." I replied before I burst out laughing, Gavnur's old human mate had bought him a pair of yellow boxer shorts with pink elephants on as a gift. Gavnur often wore these boxer shorts much to the amusement of anybody who knew about them.**

 **"It isn't funny, Liz is a lovely woman but she just has no fashion sense. It isn't a crime you know." Gavnur commented.**

 **"I'm sorry to laugh but the idea of yellow boxer shorts and pink elephants is funny to me, most of the clan find it funny actually." I said whilst I tried to stop myself from laughing even more.**

 **"Yes, I do see the funny side but I've had to put up with it for years. Everybody takes the piss out of me because of those bloody boxer shorts. The clan weren't laughing when I saved their skins in battle though, I can fight if I have to. The clan shouldn't underestimate me despite what boxer shorts I'm wearing." Gavnur concluded.**

 **"I agree, Larten sticks to red satin boxer shorts. I think that's a wise choice, they aren't cheap either let me tell you." I revealed.**

 **"Do they sell black ones?" Gavnur enquired, he sounded interested.**

 **"They sell hundreds of types and colours. I can buy you some the next time I go shopping when I'm back at the Cirque Du Freak if you like." I offered.**

 **"That would be great, black silk boxers would suit me very nicely." Gavnur stated.**

 **"I agree, you'd look really sexy in black satin boxers. I shouldn't be thinking of things like that." I replied with another grin, I was trying not to flirt but I couldn't help myself. The thought of Gavnur wearing nothing but a pair of black satin boxers really turned me on. I started to blush again, I went raspberry pink at the thought of Gavnur wearing black satin boxer shorts.**

 **"Have I embarrased you?" Gavnur asked me, he too was smiling inanely.**

 **"No, but the thought of you in black satin boxer shorts has made me blush." I admitted.**

 **"If I told you some of the thoughts that are running through my mind right now you'd be shocked." Gavnur replied and then he winked at me.**

 **"Gavnur, please don't do this to me. I'm already fighting my urges and you're making it worse." I complained.**

 **"Ooh is somebody getting turned on?" Gavnur asked me suggestively.**

 **"Gavnur, I'm so freaking horny right now it is insane. Thanks a lot for making me feel like this." I replied.**

 **"Anna, I cannot help it. I love you and I would like nothing more than to flit you to my quarters right now, once there we'd have sex until you scream my name out loud. Alas this cannot happen because you're injured, Larten would kill me and I know that you don't want to be unfaithful either." Gavnur concluded truthfully.**

 **"It is so hard, why do we both have to suffer like this? Why can't we act on our feelings?" I asked ruefully.**

 **"Larten would kill me and then he'd kill you. You heard what he said earlier about ripping my throat out." Gavnur reminded me.**

 **"Larten always threatens to do that but so far he's only ever done it to vampaneze scum." I admitted.**

 **"The vampaneze deserve everything they get, they truly are evil and I want to slaughter every last one of them." Gavnur said, he sounded like he was determined to kill them too.**

 **"Relax Gavnur, there are no vampaneze here. I have killed enough to know that I don't enjoy it, however it is necessary to kill sometimes even if you don't want to." I acknowledged.**

 **"You're right, vampires don't kill for fun. We kill so that we aren't killed. It is called survival in my book." Gavnur concluded.**

 **"I agree, I avoid it if I can but sometimes there is no other option. It is either me or them and I'm sure they think of us in the same way." I remarked.**

 **"Vampaneze see us as nothing more than their enemies, they'll kill us without thinking twice about it so that is why we must kill them first. Like I said it is purely about survival from our side, we don't kill because we want to, we kill because we have to. That is why we are different to the vampaneze." Gavnur clarified.**

 **"We do not kill when we feed either, they do. I cannot agree to murdering humans like that but I understand their belief that absorbing a person's essence is good." I replied.**

 **"Yes, that is about the only thing that I agree with. I would not deliberately kill a human just to absorb their essence, however if a dying human asked me to keep their memories alive in that way then I would oblige." Gavnur stated.**

 **"I think I would do that too, just like Prince Darren did when Sam Grest was killed by the Wolf Man." I remarked.**

 **"That was a horrible tragedy, I don't think that Sam's parents ever got over it. They could not understand how their son had ended up being disembowled like that, the police put it down to a Jack the Ripper copycat killer in the end. I saw it in the newspaper and Liz read the article to me." Gavnur explained.**

 **"Poor Mr and Mrs Grest, I feel so awful but I couldn't have prevented it from happening." I admitted.**

 **"Nobody could have stopped it from happening, it was just one of those things. If anybody is to blame it is the idiot who let the Wolf Man out of his cage, it was down to that stupid hippie who had his hands bitten off by the very creature that he set free." Gavnur reminded me.**

 **"Yeah reggie Veggie was his name, he must have died because no human could survive having his hands bitten off like that. The blood loss would be too great." I concluded.**

 **"You're probably right but we'll never know for certain. Mr Tall covered it all up of course, he had no other option." Gavnur remarked.**

 **"Mr Tall is remarkable, his powers are awesome." I stated.**

 **"I agree with you, Mr Tall is one man that you do not want to cross. Mr Tall is a very good employer, he treats his Cirque Du Freak performers like the unique talented individuals that they are, he pays them well too as you probably know." Gavnur said, he seemed interested in how much money I earnt.**

 **"Larten and I get decent wages and we** **'** **ve got our own trailer too. Everybody helps out and we are like one big family. It is a place of refuge for those of us who cannot live amongst humans, it is a place where everybody is welcomed no matter what background we've got. We help those who have nobody to turn to and nowhere left to go, these people don't find us, we find them and we rescue them. The Cirque Du Freak has saved so many lives and they will continue to do so." I confirmed.**

 **"That is one of the reasons why I admire it so much, I haven't got any talents or I would have joined the Cirque Du Freak too, alas being a Vampire General makes it hard because I have business to attend to here. I can't keep leaving the Cirque and rejoining it, it'd cause too much disruption." Gavnur stated.**

 **"I understand, your place is here Gavnur. I have nowhere to go so if I don't live here then I have to travel with the Cirque Du Freak. As I am also Larten's mate my place is by his side, wherever he goes I have to go too." I concluded.**

 **"I understand, if you were my mate I think that you'd get bored of living here. I spend most of my time attending to business, a few of my former mates complained because they wanted to go off on adventures with me, however I had stuff to do so I had to remain at the mountain." Gavnur told me, I wasn't surprised that Gavnur had lots of business to attend to. Vampire Generals are always busy, they keep the Clan in order and without their input the Princes couldn't manage.**

 **"We've been talking for ages Gavnur, could you do me a favour and take the wolves out for a run please? I would do it myself but I am not able to." I requested politely.**

 **"Of course, I want some fresh air anyway. This medical bay is rather warm." Gavnur replied as he stood up, the wolves remained laying down.**

 **"Sasha, Shadow up." I commanded and the wolves responded instantly.**

 **"Come on, let's go for a run." Gavnur said energetically to the wolves who started yapping excitedly.**

 **"If you have any problems then howl and they'll come running back to you." I instructed Gavnur.**

 **"I know how to look after wolves Anna, don't fret." Gavnur replied as he picked up his long coat and put it on.**

 **I watched as the wolves and Gavnur left my medical bay, I was alone for the first time in hours. I lay back in my hammock and I tried to sleep, the patch on my spine was working well and I was comfortable. I preferred to sleep in beds but this hammock wasn't so bad and I had more room to stretch out in it which was also good.**

 **I must have dozed off because when I opened my eyes again the first thing I saw was Sasha's large, furry face. Shadow was on the floor asleep.**

 **"Hey, did you have a good run?" I said softly to Sasha, she whined a little bit in reply.**

 **"Aww, you are such a good wolf. You must be hungry by now, I'll get somebody to bring you something." I said as I stroked Sasha's head and neck.**

 **"Is somebody there?" I called out to whoever was on duty.**

 **"Yes, I am here can I help you?" I heard a female medic reply.**

 **"Could you go and get my mate please? Ask him to bring some food for the wolves as they're hungry and I'm hungry too." I requested.**

 **"I can do that, you're Larten's mate aren't you?" the female medic asked me.**

 **"Yes, I'm Anna." I confirmed.**

 **"I won't be long, I'll go and find him for you. He can't be far away." The female medic replied before I heard her walking away.**

 **I lay back in my hammock and waited. Sasha was looking at me expectantly, she kept on nudging me and nuzzling my arm.**

 **"I know Sasha, your dinner is coming. You just have to wait a little bit longer." I said, I often spoke to my wolves as if they could understand every word that came out of my mouth.**

 **Just then Larten arrived carrying a large deer over his shoulder, the wolves leapt up and went crazy when they saw it.**

 **"Is this deer big enough?" Larten asked me.**

 **"Yes, that'll feed them both. If I were you I'd feed them outside because of the mess. I don't think that I want my medical bay covered in the remains of that deer when they're finished eating." I replied.**

 **"That is exactly what I was thinking." Larten said, at that moment he left and the wolves followed him eagerly. I had good hearing so I could hear the wolves crunching on the bones and ripping the flesh away from the carcass. The sounds of my wolves eating made me even hungrier.**

 **When Larten had fed the wolves he came back to see me, he wanted me to snuggle into him.**

 **"I'm hungry, I want to eat something." I announced.**

 **"What do you want?" Larten asked me.**

 **"A bowlful of warm stew, some bread and a mug of something that isn't alcoholic." I replied decisively.**

 **"I shall go and get it for you, the kitchen has just finished cooking a stew but I am not sure what meat they have used in it." Larten told me.**

 **"I don't mind as long as it tastes good, if it isn't any good then I'm sure that you can make me something." I remarked.**

 **"I will bring you a good meal, do not worry about anything my love. All you need to do is rest and heal." Larten replied before he vanished in a blur.**

 **My wolves came back into my medical bay soon after Larten had left, Sasha was still gnawing on a bone but Shadow just lay down and went to sleep. When Sasha had finished eating the bone she nuzzled me, she rested her head on my lap and I stroked it. The Medics didn't mind me having the wolves with me, they didn't cause any trouble and I felt safer when I was with them.**

 **When Larten returned he had a stew pot in his hand that was filled to the top, it smelt amazing.**

 **"That smells good, is it all for me or is it for both of us?" I asked as Larten dished up the stew.**

 **"I made enough for both of us, the kitchen made bat broth again which I know you are not too fond of. I made this with a mixture of game birds and wild mountain hare. It will be very meaty." Larten revealed.**

 **"The meatier the better, I'm starving." I remarked.**

 **"Eat as much as you like, you need it more than I do. I have roasted a couple of peaches and covered them in honey with some crushed nuts. I know how much you love peaches." Larten stated.**

 **"You didn't have to do that for me, the stew would have been enough. Thank you for being so attentive and kind." I said instinctively as I started to eat my bowl of stew.**

 **"I am your mate, it is my duty to provide for you. I must give you everything that you need and because you are injured I must make sure that you are cared for." Larten remarked, he was very loving and his generosity was second to none. I felt very lucky that I was on the receiving end of such kindness.**

 **When I had finished eating my stew and roasted peaches which tasted so sweet and juicy I moved over slightly, Larten got into the hammock next to me and I settled down into his arms. I still had his cloak wrapped around me like a blanket and it kept me warm. I stayed snuggled up with Larten for ages, we shared a kiss and then I fell asleep.**

 **I woke up and I was still snuggled in Larten's arms, he was laying down next to me and he was shirtless. I wasn't sure what the time was but it was after sunset. Vampires don't really use clocks, they judge the time by the position of the stars and the moon instead.**

 **I wondered who was filling in for me, I knew that I had duties to perform but I couldn't do them due to my injuries. I hoped that I wouldn't take long to heal, I was a bit uncomfortable because my back kept clicking, every time the vertebrae clicked it made me wince. My broken ribs were also giving me grief but they had to heal on their own, as for my knee it felt stiff and the cast on my leg was annoying.**

 **I hoped that I'd heal quickly and be back to normal, I wanted to return to the Cirque Du Freak but I couldn't travel such a long way in my current state. I wasn't sure if Larten wished to return to the Cirque Du Freak or not, we hadn't discussed it. I missed my cat and my hamster but I don't think that the wolves would take too kindly to them. I wasn't sure what to do about the wolves, I didn't want to leave them behind but then again how could I take them on buses and trains? I decided to stay in the mountain with Larten, if he wanted to move on then that was up to him but I was happy to remain in the mountain.**

 **For now the only thing I had to do was rest and heal, then I had to catch up on my duties. I hadn't done anything duty wise since coming back from my trip through the wilderness. I had enjoyed my trip until the point that I slipped and fell over the edge of the cliff, as I was falling I thought that I was about to die. The only thing on my mind at that moment was everything I'd left behind in my human life, I thought about my family, I often thought of my human friends and I wondered how they were getting along without me. I had a new life now and lots of new friends but I still remembered my time as a human, making the change from human to vampire is easy but living as a vampire is the hard part.**

 **I exchanged watching TV for watching matches in the Halls of Sport, I swapped my old friends for new friends and finally I traded making phonecalls for speaking to vampires face to face, most vampires couldn't read or write and none of the clan owned a mobile phone either except for myself.**

 **I had learnt to adapt and I had much more freedom as a vampiress. The night became my morning and the daytime was now my evening. I'd hunt after sunset or just before dawn, I'd exercise my wolves at dawn and dusk. I'd usually be asleep by one in the afternoon and I'd sleep through until nine or ten at night. I was in a good routine and I intended to stick with it.**


	20. Chapter 19

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 19**

 **I made up my mind to give the medical wing a thorough clean out when I was well enough, I would wash the floors and sweep away a century's worth of dust. I would also give the hammocks a good soak and a wash in very hot water, they needed it. I also decided to teach the medics about how they could prevent the spread of infections, if I could save even a couple of lives with my modern knowledge then I'd be happy.**

 **Quite often a wound would get infected due to poor hygiene and then gangrene would set in, the vampire who had it would either lose a part of their body or they'd lose their life. If I could stop this from happening then I would.**

 **We were lucky that some of the new vampiresses like myself had been born in the modern age of medical science, I was determined to modernise the medical wing and get rid of the primitive treatments. My plan was to replace all of the re-usable bandages with new disposable ones, I would insist upon the floors being swept and scrubbed daily, I also decided to throw out anything that had been open for more than a year. I also refused to let any medic use something on me if it had already been used unless it had been sterilised first.**

 **When I was fully healed I went to the Princes with my proposal, they were fully on board and they ordered that work should begin on modernising the medical wing immediately. This decision made me happy because it had the potential to save so many vampires, I mean why should a vampire die due to an infected wound that could so easily be treated with modern supplies and the correct knowledge?**

 **I had a small team of vampires helping me out, I couldn't clean the entire medical wing on my own after all. It took six of us three days to clean the medical wing to my standards, we worked at vampire speed but that just goes to show how bad it actually was in there. I replaced the hammocks with proper medical beds, the hammocks were falling to bits and they were badly stained with every bodily fluid that you can think of. Even washing them and soaking them didn't make a difference so they had to go. I also taught all of the medics about infections and how germs cause disease.**

 **I had hand washing facilities installed too. There was a stream outside which flowed beside the tunnel that led to the medical wing.**

 **We cut a hole into the rock, then we made a system of pumps and pipes that would supply the medical wing with water. I told the medics to boil the water over the fire in a sterile pot before using it, I said that doing this would kill any harmful germs.**

 **A few weeks later the Princes came to inspect the new and improved medical wing, it certainly smelt cleaner and everything in there was scrubbed daily. The sheets on the beds got changed frequently too, some vampires did not like the new beds as they were "too human" but I asked them what they'd prefer; a clean but "human" bed to sleep in or the cold stone floor. Some vampires opted to sleep on the floor, however the majority of those who needed medical treatment were happy with the new beds.**

 **I was glad to be back in the quarters that I shared with Larten, it gave us far more privacy and as such we were able to re-establish our bond in the only way that we knew how to without the fear of being interrupted.**

 **After one particularly intense session in which I had been louder than usual I asked Larten if he would blood me again, I wanted to become just like all of the other clan members and I couldn't wait to start flitting.**

 **"If your desire is to become fully blooded then I shall blood you. I must remind you that you will no longer be able to travel in the daytime, you will however get even stronger and you will gain the ability to flit. Another thing to note is that you will need to drink blood more often than you do now." Larten informed me.**

 **"I know all of this and I've accepted it. Being a vampiress is who I am, I've been half human for far too long and I think that is time to take my place as a fully blooded member of our clan." I replied expectantly.**

 **"If you are certain that it is what you want then I will make you into a fully blooded vampiress." Larten offered.**

 **"When will it happen?" I asked.**

 **"I can blood you at any time, it matters not when it takes place." Larten stated.**

 **"Would you do something for me first?" I asked.**

 **"What is it that you want me to do?" Larten queried.**

 **"I would like to become your blessed mate. I pledge myself to you and only you, with the Gods of the Vampires as my witnesses I will never take another mate unless we are separated by death." I declared.**

 **"Anna I do not know what to say, if you truly desire to become my blessed mate then I will arrange it. It has never been known for a vampire to go through two blessed mateship ceremonies, they are very rare. If you honestly are completely and utterly in love with me and no other then I will consent to becoming your blessed mate." Larten remarked, then he gazed into my eyes and all I felt from him was love.**

 **"I will have to propose to you publicly, I want to do things the traditional way." Larten told me.**

 **"You have to propose to me?" I asked, I was surprised.**

 **"A public declaration of our intent to become blessed mates is necessary, the Princes have to give their consent to it and the clan need to know about it so that they can begin making preparations." Larten clarified.**

 **"I understand, will you blood me after we become blessed mates?" I asked.**

 **"If you wish to be blooded afterwards that is fine, you could be blooded as part of the blessed mateship ceremony itself or you could be blooded beforehand. If you choose to be blooded before the ceremony it would give your body time to adjust." Larten explained.**

 **"I think that I would like to be blooded a night or so after our ceremony, that way we truly will be bonded for life." I replied.**

 **"I shall make you my blessed mate, after our first day together as blessed mates I will blood you." Larten declared.**

 **"I assume that we will spend some of our time as newly blessed mates alone in our quarters?" I queried, I was curious.**

 **"That is a natural part of becoming blessed mates, we are effectively going to be getting married if that helps you to understand it better." Larten answered.**

 **"That is what I thought, will I have to take your last name as my own?" I asked.**

 **"If that is what you wish to do then you may take my last name, the clan will probably refer to you as Madam Crepsley now unless they are a friend of yours." Larten told me, I liked the sound of that because it made me feel special.**

 **"Doesn't your former blessed mate still hold that name?" I asked.**

 **"No, she does not. My former blessed mate is referred to as Madam Ver Leth as she is the mate of Prince Mika now." Larten explained.**

 **"At least there won't be any confusion when it comes to names." I said.**

 **"My last name will become your last name too, nobody will change that fact." Larten promised me.**

 **"Oh Larten I love you so much." I said before I kissed him deeply, I often told Larten that I loved him.**

 **"I know that you love me, you would not have pledged yourself to me otherwise. Also, if you did not love me then you would not wish to become my blessed mate. I have actually been thinking about asking you to become my blessed mate for a while now, I just had not found the right moment to ask you." Larten admitted.**

 **"Really? Are you being serious?" I asked, I was shocked.**

 **"Yes Anna, I have never been more certain or serious about anything. When I met you I knew that we were destined to become as one, two bodies but one soul. You are my missing piece, you are the lady that I have spent decades searching for. I have had many lovers but none of them can compare to you, do not be shocked by this statement but I love you more than my former blessed mate and Arra combined. I cannot imagine living my life now unless you are a part of it." Larten confessed, this was the first time that Larten had told me truthfully how he felt about me, normally he wasn't very good at expressing his emotions in words. Larten told me on many occasions that he loved me, however I had no idea up until now that he loved me this much.**

 **We stayed in our quarters that evening for far longer than we normally would do, we were spending lots of time together so that our bond would be unbreakable. We were having sex and lots of it, the sex itself was different too. It felt different because our bodies would be joined together for longer. Larten said that we were destined to become as one, I think that is why we were having sex like this. We were making two bodies mould into one body, by doing this we believed that our souls were also being forged into one entity too.**

 **"We truly are becoming as one, no vampire will be able to come between us or split us apart." Larten told me.**

 **"After the ceremony our mateship will be permanent and then we'll be stuck with each other for better or for worse, through good times and bad we'll be united." I replied.**

 **"That is the general idea, you could spend the next five hundred years with me. Are you sure that you will not get bored of me?" Larten asked me, I wasn't sure if he was joking or not.**

 **"I will not get bored, I just hope that you can keep me satisfied. Until I met you no-one had ever made me scream before or cry out their name, you are the only skilled lover I've had, all the others were rubbish except for Gavnur but we won't talk about that." I stated.**

 **"When you have had sex with a couple of hundred women over the space of a century you tend to learn what they like, sex is an art which I have perfected. I was not always this good, I had to work at it and I used to practice all the time. I had to stop sleeping with human women because I became much too powerful for them, if I slept with a human female now she'd end up being hurt. My nails would cut her flesh, my sheer strength would overpower her and my speed would be too much for her to cope with." Larten explained.**

 **"Do you still have vampiric lust in you?" I asked.**

 **"I do but I have learnt to control it. I must tell you though that sometimes when I see you wearing your short skirts there is nothing I want to do more than to rip your clothing off, put my dick inside your body and fuck you senseless until you orgasm whilst begging me not to stop." Larten revealed.**

 **"Maybe one night you could do that to me, I think I'd like it and don't hold back either." I said in response.**

 **"There are things I can do to your body that would drive you wild, I have been holding back because I was unsure if you could cope with it. I would not want to hurt you." Larten remarked.**

 **"I understand, we'll have to experiment with each other until we find out what we enjoy doing the most." I suggested.**

 **"I will make sure that you are never left wanting." Larten replied confidently.**

 **"I am sure that you will always keep me satisfied, you have done a great job so far and we've been together for about three years. I have no complaints." I concluded.**

 **"You will never have any reason to complain about my performance, the only thing you will do is ask me for more. You will either be crying out my name or you will scream because I will make you orgasm so powerfully that you will lose control of yourself, I will make you see stars and touch the sky, I can make you enter Paradise whilst still being alive and you know that is the truth." Larten bragged.**

 **"I do not doubt your abilities, I will never be with anybody else. I am yours until the end of time because I've pledged myself to you, I will never love another as much as you and I only have eyes for you." I acknowledged.**

 **"If that is how you honestly feel about me then becoming blessed mates is a wise choice. A blessed mateship should not be entered into unless both parties are absolutely certain that they want to spend the rest of their lives together." Larten declared.**

 **"When can we become blessed mates?" I asked, I wanted it to happen as soon as possible.**

 **"I will begin making arrangements this evening, it should not be more than a fortnight before everything is ready for the ceremony to take place." Larten told me, he then gently pulled me close to him and we kissed each other for a long time.**

 **I felt ecstatic, I could not believe that I was actually going to be getting married vampire style. I was so excited but I had to try and keep a level head, inside I was jumping for joy. I couldn't believe how lucky I was, I just wanted to shout it from the top of the mountain but I couldn't do that. I had to keep it a secret until the Princes had given us permission to become blessed mates, I had to wait for Larten to ask me publicly for my hand in blessed mateship too. We were trying to do things in the traditional way and in the correct order.**

 **"Can I tell anyone about this or not?" I asked, I wanted to be sure.**

 **"If you wish to tell Seba then you may tell him, I will speak with him about it too. I want his approval." Larten replied.**

 **"I understand, the hard part is going to be hiding it from the clan until we have got permission from the Princes. I'm afraid that because of how emotional I am the clan might guess that something is up." I admitted.**

 **"In what way are you emotional?" Larten asked.**

 **"I'm so happy, inside I'm jumping for joy and my heart is beating really loudly, it is going faster than usual. I haven't stopped smiling either." I remarked.**

 **"Does it really mean that much to you?" Larten asked me.**

 **"Of course it does, entering into a blessed mateship with you means everything to me." I said honestly.**

 **"If I could make you my blessed mate at this very moment I would, alas we must wait but not for long." Larten conceeded.**

 **"I love you with all of my heart body and soul my beloved, I don't have a pet name for you. I can't think of one that suits you." I commented.**

 **"Dark angel of mine you do not need to call me anything other than my name." Larten replied.**


	21. Chapter 20

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 20**

 **Another couple of nights went by and the preparations were going well, my dress was being made, the dresses for Kiera and Jenna were being designed, the hall where the ceremony was going to take place had been cleaned and it was in the process of being decorated, the kitchen was gearing up to cook a feast for us all and the Princes had written out some formal vows that we would have to say to one another during the ceremony.**

 **I was sitting in one of the Halls of Sport, I had been watching a wrestling match between Gavnur and a General that I didn't know. I was naturally rooting for Gavnur and when he won the match I cheered loudly. I was just about to watch another match when Vanez Blaine stopped all of the sports. He announced that the vampires in the Halls of Sport had been requested to go to the Hall of Khledon Lurt for an announcement. I knew what was about to happen but I couldn't let on, so far everything had been kept hidden from the general population, only myself, Mr Tall, Seba, Larten, Kiera, Jenna, Gavnur, the head chef, the General who was making my dress and the Princes knew about what was going to take place. None of the other vampires had a clue about the blessed mateship, they had been invited back to the mountain by Larten under false pretences.**

 **When I walked into the hall I saw that the tables and benches had been replaced, we had long wooden tables now and proper chairs rather than animal bones that had been nailed together. This was to make the hall look good for the upcoming feast that would follow the blessed mateship ceremony itself. The vampires upon entering the hall looked around and they said things like;**

 **"Who replaced the tables?" and another vampiress said;**

 **"It looks like a banqueting hall now, I like it."**

 **I chose a place to sit and the new chairs were rather comfortable. I was trying hard not to shake too much because of my nerves. This was it, Larten was about to officially ask me for my hand in blessed mateship in front of a hall full of vampires.**

 **Seba sat next to me, he gave me a knowing look and that told me everything that I needed to know. I quickly took the ring off of my left hand ring finger and I put it onto my right hand, after that I just sat and waited to see what would happen next. I wasn't wearing anything that looked nice, I was wearing a jacket, boots and trousers. In other words I was dressed casually, a lot of the vampires around me were wearing capes, cloaks or robes. I had Larten's cloak draped around me because I was cold. It wasn't uncommon for me to wear it around the halls, it was so big that it swamped me and it dragged along the ground. It did however keep me warmer than regular clothing did which was good. It got washed frequently too.**

 **Larten entered the hall but none of the other vampires paid much attention to his entrance, they were still holding discussions about the new tables and chairs and whether they liked them or not. When all of the Princes walked into the hall there was silence, not one vampire spoke because they knew that something was about to happen.**

 **"Vampires of the clan, welcome back to the mountain. None of you know why you have been summoned here because you have not been told. All will become clear in a few minutes time, for now though I ask you to remain silent. I will now hand over to Larten and he will explain everything to you all." Prince Arrow announced to the gathered vampires.**

 **"Vampires and vampiresses as you are all aware I am currently in a mateship agreement with Anna, for those of you who do not know Anna she is sitting next to Seba Nile with my cloak wrapped around her. I have been in this mateship term with Anna for a long time, as such we have discussed certain things. The time has come for me to publicly declare that I Larten Crepsley am intending to make Anna my blessed mate. Anna would you come over here?" Larten asked, I stood up and I walked over to Larten. I didn't exactly know what to expect. I was feeling very nervous and I felt a little bit embarrased too.**

 **By this point all of the gathered vampires were staring at me, I had roughly two hundred eyes looking in my direction.**

 **"I have never been very good at public speaking so I will make this brief, Anna will you do me the very great honour of accepting me as your blessed mate?" Larten asked me and at that moment the hall erupted in cheers.**

 **"Larten, there is no-one in this life that means more to me than you do, I'd be honoured to accept your proposal and become your blessed mate." I declared, the vampires were cheering even louder now.**

 **"I give you this ring as proof of my feelings, please accept it and wear it as a symbol of our connection to one another." Larten said as he placed a ring on my finger, it looked like it matched the set that I had already received.**

 **I held my hand up to the light that was being given off by a flaming torch, my ring flashed and sparkled more than anything I'd ever seen.**

 **"Is that it? Can I sit down now?" I asked quietly.**

 **"Not quite, there is one more thing that we must do first." Larten said.**

 **"Now what?" I asked, I was bemused and embarrased.**

 **"I have to announce the date that our ceremony will take place on." Larten told me quietly.**

 **"Oh right, that makes sense. The clan cannot attend if they do not know when and where the ceremony is taking place." I answered back.**

 **"May I have your attention, I would like to announce that following the acceptance of my proposal our blessed mateship will be held on the twentieth of April in the newly named Hall of Ceremonies. The ceremony will take place three hours after the sunset on that night, after that there will be a feast in this hall and further festivities. All of you are permitted to attend, please dress in your finest attire for this is a ery special occasion." Larten announced to the gathered vampires, there was still a fair bit of cheering and disorder taking place but that was to be expected. The clan hadn't had anything to celebrate in a long time and now they were going wild. We got bundled by half of the vampires in the hall, I wasn't expecting them to get so emotional but then again I didn't know much about vampires.**

 **"I think that the clan are happy for us." I said, I was speaking louder than usual because of all the noise.**

 **Eventually the Princes managed to calm everybody down and order was restored, however a fair few barrels of ale had already been consumed.**

 **"I never knew that the clan would be so excited by our news." I said to Seba when we were sitting at one of the tables.**

 **"The clan need a reason to be happy, all they have known recently is loss and the horrors of battle. Your news has given the clan a reason to smile for the first time in a long time." Seba told me.**

 **"I can understand that, I guess that this gathering is like an unofficial engagement party of some description." I replied.**

 **"I think that is an accurate description of what is going on here this evening, all we need now is some food and a few more barrels of ale." Gavnur concurred.**

 **"Gavnur Purl you have already had more than enough ale this evening." Seba interjected.**

 **"You can never drink enough ale, bring up some more barrels from the storeroom." Gavnur said to a non ranked vampire in his most commanding tone of voice.**

 **"I will pass on the ale but food would be great right about now." I remarked, as I said these words a couple of the kitchen workers appeared in front of us with a large stag that was whole, it had been spit roasted and covered in wild fruits along with their juice. The kitchen workers put the stag in its entirety on the table in front of us, we took one whiff of the fresh meat and got stuck in to it. It didn't go very far, luckily the kitchen staff brought out more food and put it on the other tables. This was obviously a pre-planned meal, it couldn't have been pulled off at short notice.**

 **"This meat tastes good, who came up with the idea of providing a meal for everybody?" I asked between mouthfuls of venison.**

 **"I did, I thought that it would be a good idea to provide a decent meal considering how much alcohol is being consumed. I did not wish to deal with hungover vampires so I organised this banquet. If you think this is impressive Anna just wait until you see what we have planned for your actual mateship ceremony celebrations." Seba revealed.**

 **"You've actually planned things?" I asked, I was surprised.**

 **"We have pulled out all the stops and no expense has been spared, however I do not want to ruin the surprise so I will not tell you anything further." Seba remarked.**

 **"Larten I don't know what to say, this whole scenario seems like a dream. I'm overwhelmed at how much effort you have put in to this whole thing." I stated.**

 **"Nothing is too much trouble if it is planned carefully and organised in plenty of time, you have no idea what I have got in store for our blessed mateship ceremony. Our first rehearsal is tomorrow, I recommend that we do not stay up all night because we have a packed schedule ahead of us." Larten informed me.**

 **"Would it be alright if we shared a public kiss just to cement our union?" I whispered to Larten.**

 **"You mean after we have exchanged rings like in a human wedding?" Larten asked.**

 **"I was referring to right here, right now but if you think we should save it for the ceremony then we will." I replied.**

 **"Most of the other vampires are not paying attention to us, even if we did kiss hardly any of them would notice us doing it. The vampires in this hall are too busy stuffing themselves with food and drinking barrel after barrel of ale to care about what we are doing." Larten told me.**

 **"Is that your way of saying that you are OK with it or were you merely making an observation?" I asked.**

 **Larten didn't answer me, instead he kissed me with some degree of passion. It was controlled but playful. I shut my eyes and went with it, I don't know how long the kiss lasted but it felt like we were kissing for quite a while.**

 **"Ahem." I heard a loud cough which broke my concentration and ended the kiss.**

 **"I looked up to see Prince Arrow standing over us.**

 **"That's enough you two, save it for your quarters." Prince Arrow said sternly.**

 **"Sorry about that Sire, we got a bit carried away." I remarked by way of an apology.**

 **"I understand, just keep your public displays to a minimum." Prince Arrow reiterated.**

 **"If that is your command then I shall obey it." I replied.**

 **"Oh let them be Arrow, they're in love for crying out loud." Prince Mika interrupted.**

 **Prince Arrow walked off, he looked annoyed.**

 **"Thank you for stepping in there Sire." I said.**

 **"Arrow needs to lighten up a bit, I think that if you two wish to show your love for one another then you should be able to do so. Of course there is a line between what is acceptable in public and what should be kept private but you knew that anyway." Prince Mika stated.**

 **"We will never go beyond kissing if we're in public and even then we don't let that go too far. We have respect for the clan." I replied.**

 **"I know, you're both vampires of high standing so you know what is expcted of you. You also know how to act appropriately in public places." Prince Mika acknowledged.**

 **"Shall we retire to our quarters now? I need to sleep before our rehearsal tomorrow." I asked Larten quietly after Prince Mika had left us.**

 **"I think that is a wise choice." Larten said as we both stood up and left the hall, many of the other vampires were still in there eating and drinking so we left them to it. I had to check on the wolves so that is where I went first.**

 **Sasha was doing well, she was feeding the pups when I saw her. There was no trace left of the deer that she'd been given, she must have eaten the whole carcass bones and all. I took Shadow out and together we brought down a big stag, it had eight or nine points on its antlers. I got Larten to help me carry it back up to where Sasha was, I watched as Shadow ate first and then Sasha got stuck in. I left them to it and went next door where Larten had set up temporary accommodation for us, it wasn't as nice as the quarters we'd had previously slept in but they'd do for now.**

 **"As announcements and public proposals go that went well." I remarked.**

 **"I tried to keep it brief, long drawn out proposals are not really my style. I prefer to keep things short and to the point." Larten replied.**

 **"It was perfect, I couldn't have asked for a better public proposal, however I wasn't expecting to be bundled by half the clan." I said as I examined my new ring.**

 **"Do you like the ring? I had it designed for you. Look on the inside of it." Larten instructed me.**

 **I removed my new ring, the stone in it was much larger than I'd expected it to be. I looked on the inside of the ring, there was an engraving on it which said:**

 **"United as one, forever my dark angel, always in my heart."**

 **"Aww, that is so sweet, I love it." I commented.**

 **"I had Prince Darren write the words out for me on a piece of paper because you know I cannot read or write." Larten admitted.**

 **"Seba has told me that you cannot read or write, would you like to learn?" I asked.**

 **"Are you offering to teach me?" Larten asked.**

 **"If that is what you want then I can help you to learn." I offered.**

 **"Vampires have no need of such skills." Larten answered.**

 **"Very well, but if you should change your mind then just ask me and I'll do my best to help you." I concluded.**

 **"Did you enjoy the meal that Seba organised for us all?" Larten queried.**

 **"It was very nice, I ate until I felt like bursting and I don't normally do that. I do miss certain human food though, I'd give anything for a piece of chocolate fudge cake right about now." I answered honestly.**

 **"Chocolate fudge cake? What is that?" Larten asked, bemused.**

 **"Well it is a cake that is covered in chocolate, filled with warm fudge sauce and served with cream. It is very sweet and rich but it tastes divine." I replied as I imagined the taste of it in my mind, I hadn't eaten it in years.**

 **"It is not something that I have ever eaten, I prefer meat and fish to anything else. I have not eaten human food in a very long time except for when we were in the hotel." Larten stated.**

 **"Are we going to have a mateship cake?" I asked.**

 **"A mateship cake?" Larten questioned me.**

 **"You know, like a wedding cake. You said that you want to do things traditionally." I clarified.**

 **"I meant doing things traditionally for vampires not humans, we are not getting married in the human sense of the word." Larten remarked.**

 **"Oh, never mind then." I said sadly.**

 **"Would you like a cake?" Larten asked me, his question surprised me a little.**

 **"If it is not too much trouble to organise then I'd like one very much." I responded truthfully.**

 **"I will add to the list of things that still need to be done." Larten sighed, he really was trying his best to make me happy.**

 **"Thank you, I appreciate it." I said instantly out of gratitude.**

 **"You are welcome, sometimes I forget how much the little details mean. The smallest detail means the most to some individuals." Larten conceeded.**

 **"Are we classed as engaged now or do vampires not become engaged?" I queried.**

 **"We are officially pledged to one another with intent." Larten told me.**

 **"Pledged with intent? That sounds serious." I commented.**

 **"We are pledged to one another with the intention of becoming blessed mates, that is what it means." Larten clarified.**

 **"Oh, now I understand." I remarked.**

 **"I am glad that I have explained it in a way that you understand." Larten said.**

 **"How do I refer to you? Are you my fiancé or is there another way of describing you?" I asked.**

 **"You can refer to me as that if you wish to, however in vampire terms we are pledged mates with intent." Larten acknowledged.**

 **"If I am chatting to somebody then I will refer to you as my pledged mate, do I have to use the full title?" I asked.**

 **"You should say that I am your soon to be blessed mate or you can refer to me as your pledged mate, either is acceptable and the clan will understand what you mean." Larten answered.**

 **"OK, I'll refer to you as my pledged mate if any of the clan asks me about us. It is not very likely though because the majority of the clan witnessed your public proposal." I stated.**

 **"Yes they did witness it, I spent a while practising and working out exactly what to say because I wanted it to be perfect." Larten admitted.**

 **"It was perfect, I didn't expect anything less from you." I acknowledged.**

 **"It was not my first proposal, I have proposed to a few ladies in my lifetime but none of the engagements ever came to anything except for my former blessed mateship." Larten stated.**

 **"You lived in a different time, back then it was customary for a couple to be married before engaging in sexual activities, it was also customary for ladies to be pure until they married. I can understand why you proposed to these ladies, it was the right thing to do but in the modern age things are very different. A human woman could not handle you anyway, they are too weak and you could cause them serious damage if you had sex with them. Besides that you've got me now so you don't need to have sex with anybody else." I concluded.**

 **"I am officially pledged to you with intent so I will not mate with any other clan member, I would not ever betray you like that." Larten told me.**

 **"I appreciate that, loyalty means a lot to me and so too does trust." I replied.**

 **"I know that, I will never give you a reason to lose your trust in me. I will treat you in the way that a lady should be treated and I will endeavour to make you happy. I will give you gifts that are fit for royalty, nothing is too good for you and you deserve the very best of everything." Larten concluded.**

 **"I do not need gifts although I appreciate them greatly, I ask only that you love me and that you provide for me food, protection and shelter. I am not using you for money or high standing, I would never use you because I am genuinely in love with you." I responded.**

 **"I do not doubt these facts, if I had any doubt then I would not have agreed to become your blessed mate. I do not think that you would have pledged yourself to me otherwise, it takes a lot of courage to pledge yourself to somebody." Larten concluded.**

 **"Seeing as we are now officially pledged to each other with intent maybe we should..." I stopped speaking and yawned.**

 **"Maybe we should have sex?" Larten said as he finished my sentence.**

 **"Yes, I mean it feels like the right thing to do. We are in love and pledged to each other, the clan will expect it won't they?" I asked.**

 **"The clan will be expecting us to mate, it is a part of the public proposal. Traditionally the two vampires in question become pledged with intent publicly, after that they retire to their shared quarters and mate with each other as a sign of confirmation to the clan that they truly are pledged with intent." Larten disclosed.**

 **"If that is the case then hadn't we better mate? For all we know there are clan members standing outside our quarters waiting to hear us going at it. That's what used to happen at human weddings, the bride and groom would go to bed and then they would have to make love to each other publicly, at least royal couples did anyway. I learnt about it in my history lessons." I explained.**

 **"I also remember hearing about something along those lines. We will give anybody who may be eavesdropping something to listen to." Larten remarked suggestively.**

 **"Yes, we certainly will do." I agreed as we got undressed and I lay down with Larten in our temporary coffin, Sasha had her litter in the coffin that we normally slept in.**

 **We proceeded to have sex, there was no holding back or taking it slow this time. Larten was staking his claim (excuse the pun) to me and to my body. If I hadn't been Larten's mate before then I most definately was his pledged mate with intent without any doubt now.**

 **We stayed connected for as long as we could, it was something to do with improving upon our bond to each other.**

 **"How was that for you?" Larten asked me when we were resting, both of us were exhausted and for vampires that is unusual.**

 **"It was really good, I can't describe to you the emotions I felt or the sensations I had, both of these things were too powerful for words." I replied.**

 **"That was one of my best performances, I told you that I would make you cry out for more." Larten countered, he seemed pleased with himself.**

 **"I think that half of the mountain heard us but that's what we were aiming for." I responded.**

 **"I think that every vampire within a five mile radius heard us whether they meant to or not. We had better get some sleep, otherwise we will never be able to wake up in time for our blessed mateship rehearsal." Larten stated.**

 **"I agree, good day." I replied before I yawned, turned around and settled myself comfortably. I pulled Larten's cloak over me as if it were a blanket, Larten gently pulled me close to him, he wrapped his arms around me and then I drifted off to sleep...**


	22. Chapter 21

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 21**

 **When I eventually woke up I felt warm, both of us were still snuggled up together and that was something that I liked waking up to. I shifted slightly to stretch out because I had been curled up for so long, I had to stretch my legs a little or they'd become stiff and painful.**

 **Whenever I moved Larten would shift slightly too, sometimes I'd kiss him very lightly and he'd open his eyes, kiss me back and pull me even closer to him. Larten was very sweet and loving towards me and I couldn't ask for a better pledged mate.**

 **"I think we had better get ready for our rehearsal." I said quietly to Larten. I got up and Larten moved when I did, he opened his eyes and saw me dressing myself.**

 **"Is it time for our rehearsal already?" Larten asked me.**

 **"I believe so, we didn't get much sleep because we were quite active and as such the time went by so quickly." I replied.**

 **"The Princes have written some vows for us but I hope that they are not too long or drawn out." Larten said.**

 **"I think that they will be beautifully written, Prince Darren will have been a great help due to his reading and writing ability." I remarked.**

 **"Seba offered the Princes some suggestions for appropriate vows, I hope that they listened to his advice. I do not mind what the Princes have come up with as long as the vows in question are not sentimental and over the top romantic. I also hope that Prince Darren has not made them too human." Larten stated, he seemed slightly agitated.**

 **"It will be fine, this is just a rehearsal so we can edit the vows if they need to be edited." I said confidently.**

 **"If we were to change what the Princes have written for us then it could be seen as highly offensive." Larten told me.**

 **"I understand that but instead of changing the vows themselves maybe we could miss one out if it does not apply to us." I suggested.**

 **"That is possible, we could say that the ceremony is too long and request to miss out a certain vow in order to make the running time shorter." Larten agreed.**

 **"Shall we go to the Prince's Dome now and find out exactly what they've got in store for us?" I asked.**

 **"We should eat first and then go, besides we are holding the rehearsal in the hall where the ceremony is going to be taking place. This way we can plan it, we can work out where everybody will be standing and other details like that." Larten remarked as we headed down the tunnel that led to the hall where food was served. I had to try and get back some of my energy, I was tired because Larten had worn me out due to the sex being so intense.**

 **I helped myself to a bowlful of mountain berries and a mug of water, I didn't feel like eating stew for breakfast tonight. When the bowful of berries and mug of water were gone I followed Larten to the hall, it had been specially selected to host our blessed mateship ceremony in and as such it was in the process of being decorated. Banners and ornamental weapons were being hung on the walls and a platform had been made, we would stand on the platform alongside the Princes and say our vows infront of the clan members who were attending the ceremony.**

 **Sophie had not been officially invited by us for obvious reasons, however as Prince Mika's mate if she chose to attend as his guest then we could not prevent her from doing so.**

 **"What do you think of the hall?" Larten asked me as he pointed to where a long banner was going to be placed.**

 **"I like it, I would like to see some more blue and silver banners hung up, maybe some ribbons too. It is so that the decorations will match my dress." I requested.**

 **"If that is what you wish then I will organise it, I am a little bit concerned that your dress will not match my suit. I am planning to wear a red suit, will that match with blue and silver?" Larten asked me.**

 **"No, it won't match." I replied.**

 **"I thought that you were wearing purple and gold, red matches both of those colours." Larten stated.**

 **"It was too much like a vampaneze colour, blue and silver is what I've chosen and my dress is almost complete. All I need now are some shoes to wear." I remarked as a subtle hint.**

 **Larten took out his wallet and he handed me a load of cash.**

 **"If you require shoes then go and purchase them or have a pair made for you, the money I have just given you should cover the cost of them." Larten said.**

 **"You have done enough for me, this is too much money for one pair of shoes." I replied.**

 **"You must have the very best of everything, you deserve nothing less than the best." Larten remarked.**

 **"Your generosity is endless, I feel so lucky and privileged." I declared.**

 **"Anna spoiling you is part and parcel of my role as your pledged mate." Larten told me.**

 **"Shall we begin the rehearsal now?" I asked.**

 **"Yes, we can begin now that the Princes are in attendance." Larten confirmed.**

 **The Vampire Princes had entered the hall where we were and then they started directing how the ceremony would be conducted, we were told to stand upon the raised platform and practice saying our vows.**

 **"You have to say them nice and loud so that every vampire in the hall can hear you." Prince Darren said mockingly, he knew perfectly well as do we all that vampires have superior hearing.**

 **"Yes, we are aware of that fact thank you Sire." I replied cheekily.**

 **"Well get on with it, let's hear you declare your intentions to each other." Prince Mika said with a sly smirk in my direction, the Princes were not taking this seriously and we didn't know why.**

 **I read down the piece of paper that Prince Darren had written out and then I realised why the Princes were trying hard not to laugh. Our vows had been written and they were very funny. One vow was "I hereby promise to always annoy you by insisting that the coffin lid remains open." and another vow was "I promise not to snore like Gavnur Purl." As soon as I tried to read this vow out I was in stitches, I couldn't keep a straight face. Prince Darren had obviously intended to do this as a joke, the whole thing was a set up. Larten saw the funny side of it, especially the vow about Gavnur. I think that Gavnur added that in as a joke just to lighten the mood of an otherwise auspicious occasion.**

 **"Are these the real vows or have these just been written as a joke?" I asked, I was just double checking.**

 **"I wrote them with Gavnur to help you to relax, the real vows are written on this piece of paper. The other vows are just for comedy, you can use the funny ones if you like but you don't have to." Prince Darren said reassuringly, then he handed me the piece of paper which had the real vows written on it.**

 **The real vows were much more appropriate for the occasion, I think that Larten was relieved when he found out that there were in his own words "much more suitable vows", I couldn't picture him promising me not to snore like Gavnur Purl infront of the clan, although it would be very funny if he actually did make that promise to me publicly.**

 **"Let's practice the real vows now, we've got the humour out of the way and it is time to take this ceremony seriously." I said.**

 **"Yes Anna, you are correct. You can always trust Gavnur to make a mockery out of things." Larten remarked.**

 **"I think it was just meant to be a joke, Gavnur knew that you wouldn't really promise not to snore like he does." I stated.**

 **"What are the real vows?" Larten asked me.**

 **"They say and I quote; I Larten Crepsley promise you Anna infront of these assembled witnesses that I shall stand by your side in battle, I shall share no other coffin but yours, I will love you and no other, I give you this ring in recognition of these promises, may this ring serve as a reminder of the promises that we have made to one another and like this ring may these promises never be broken." I read out in full to Larten so he knew what he had to say.**

 **"That seems to be a very well thought out set of vows, I am happy with them and I shall mean every word of them." Larten remarked.**

 **"I have to say the same vows to you but I just say the names in reverse order." I explained.**

 **"What happens after we have read out our vows and exchanged rings?" Larten asked Prince Mika.**

 **"After this point in the ceremony the Princes will in turn publicly declare you to be blessed mates, after that you can share a kiss if you desire and finally you'll be asked to take your first steps together as blessed mates, you can do this by leading us into the other hall where the banquet will take place." Prince Mika explained to us.**

 **"That sounds reasonable, I like how you have put the ceremony together. It is not a bit like my former blessed mateship ceremony." Larten replied.**

 **"We respected your wishes and we tried to make it as different as we could, we have also kept it formal but not too long or drawn out." Prince Mika explained.**

 **"I think that all of you have done a marvelous job, I like the vows you've written for us very much." I acknowledged.**

 **"When the ceremony starts you will be on the platform Larten and Anna will be led into the hall by Seba, if you could face each other whilst saying your vows that would be good. At the moment you're saying your vows facing the guests, this night is about you declaring your wish to become blessed mates of one another, it i not about reading out something to a few guests." Prince Mika explained.**

 **"I'm led into the room and then I step up onto the platform, then you say your bit about welcoming us all here for the occasion. After that you'll say your vows to me, I'll say the same vows to you, we kiss and take each other's hand to lead the clan into the hall. Finally we'll get drunk, stuff ourselves with food and then we'll leave the hall and go to our quarters. The clan will hopefully be given strict instructions not to disturb us for any reason except in an emergency, once we're alone in our quarters we'll cement our union and that's when we really will be blessed mates." I stated.**

 **"That's pretty much it, you've just explained the whole process and what will take place at each stage of the process." Prince Mika concluded.**

 **"I'm good at that, I pick things up quickly." I replied.**

 **"I am happy with how the ceremony is going to be conducted, I would like to believe that the clan will respect our privacy when the time comes." Larten remarked as his throat turned red with embarrasment.**

 **"We have discussed that with Seba and he has come up with a solution. Seba is going to assign you some new quarters, they will be decorated and very comfortable but they'll be away from the main areas of occupation. None of the clan will have a reason to go to the part of the mountain where you'll be staying, as such you'll be able to cement your union without being disturbed." Prince Mika told us.**

 **"That sounds ideal, I guess a human would refer to it as the honeymoon suite but vampires don't have honeymoons for obvious reasons." I concluded.**

 **"Will we be given a bed?" Larten enquired.**

 **"Seba thinks that an extra luxurious coffin will suffice, it will be longer and wider than the one you've got. It will also be lined with red velvet, does that suit you?" Prince Mika asked us both.**

 **"It will serve very nicely, thank you Sire for thinking of it." Larten replied politely.**

 **"It was Seba's idea, we merely approved of it." Prince Mika said.**

 **"I am grateful to all of you for putting so much effort into this ceremony, it means a lot to us." I added.**

 **"It is a very rare occasion, as it is so rare we have decided to make it the best it can be. The clan will be celebrating for a long time after the ceremony is over, think of it like the Festival of the Undead but much more formal. We've even got a new band, they'll play a mixture of tunes and a few human songs in order to suit all musical tastes." Prince Mika told me.**

 **"In that case you've really pushed the boat out." I said.**

 **"That isn't the half of it, we've managed to get Mr Tall on board and he is going to set up an outdoor display, I think they are called fireworks or something. That's what he said he was going to organise for you both." Prince Mika revealed.**

 **"Oh my word, are you serious? I love fireworks, they go bang in the sky whilst showing off an array of colours." I explained.**

 **"That is Mr Tall's donation to the ceremony, he will arrive by tomorrow evening and he's bringing along a few familiar faces too." Prince Mika declared.**

 **"He must be bringing the performers with him, they were all invited to attend but I did not know how they were going to get here." Larten stated.**

 **"We've got a full house by the sounds of things. Has anybody invited Mr Tiny?" I queried.**

 **"Prince Arrow invited him in person, I understand that Lady Evanna is also going to attend. We had to invite them both or they may have done something unpleasant to all of us." Prince Mika explained.**

 **"It is better to be safe than sorry, is Sophie going to come as your guest Sire?" I asked.**

 **"I don't think she wishes to attend the ceremony itself but she'll be at the banquet, she is my mate and she can do as she pleases. I will however ensure that she conducts herself respectfully." Prince Mika assured us.**

 **"I don't mind her attending our ceremony as long as she doesn't cause a scene, I don't want her to get drunk and then embarrass herself either. I'm thinking of her when I say this." I replied.**

 **"Don't worry, I'll speak with her about your concerns and if I think that she's being out of order then I will step in, you have my word as a Prince that she will not ruin your blessed mateship ceremony." Prince Mika reiterated.**

 **"It isn't long to go now, we've got a week left before the actual ceremony itself takes place." I stated.**

 **"You'd better rehearse your vows, it would be awful if you messed them up or said the wrong thing at the wrong time." Prince Mika advised us both.**

 **"They are not very long, I'm sure we'll say them perfectly." I remarked confidently.**

 **"I will practice until I can say my vows without faltering or making any mistakes." Larten replied, he sounded serious.**

 **"Have you got the rings organised?" I asked Larten.**

 **"Yes, I have to collect them and then they will be ready for the ceremony. Everything is in order as far as I am aware." Larten remarked.**

 **"I want to run through the complete ceremony from beginning to end with everybody doing their parts, that way I'll have an idea of what to expect." I requested.**

 **"Alright let's do it, the more times we rehearse it the better." Prince Mika said.**

 **"I agree with you." I replied.**

 **"I want your attention, I've decided to hold a complete run through of the ceremony from start to finish. If you're involved in the ceremony go to your places and prepare to do your parts, all other clan members will stop working and sit on the benches." Prince Mika commanded, the clan members responded without any hesitation to his instructions.**

 **I went outside of the hall alongside Gavnur, Seba, Jenna and Kiera because I had to be walked into the room at the start of the ceremony. Gavnur would have the rings but for now we just skipped the ring bit and we focused on the main part of the ceremony. The rehearsal started off well, I was led into the hall, I stood on the platform opposite Larten and I prepared to say my vows. I was still reading the vows off of the piece of paper because I hadn't learnt them yet. I read what was written on the sheet without thinking about what I was actually saying.**

 **"I Anna promise to kick Gavnur in the bum." I began and the whole room erupted in laughter.**

 **"Whoops, that was the wrong sheet of paper I've just read from." I said as I blushed furiously. The vampires in the hall were in stitches, I just stood there looking red faced. Gavnur couldn't stop laughing either.**

 **When the hall had gone quiet again I picked up the correct piece of paper and I put the sheet of joke vows down. My joke vows were different to Larten's and they were very funny.**

 **"Let's try this again, I'm sorry I messed it up before. Damn you Gavnur Purl for handing me the wrong sheet of paper on purpose." I remarked.**

 **"I won't apologise for it, it was just too hilarious." Gavnur replied.**

 **"I'll go from the top. I Anna promise to stand by your side on the battlefield, I promise to share no other coffin but yours, I promise to love you and only death will separate us. Is this correct?" I asked.**

 **"No, you missed out the part about the ring." Prince Mika replied.**

 **"I thought we were skipping the ring vows until we actually have the rings to hand." I remarked.**

 **"You can practice the vows without actually having the rings, it'd be too much like the real thing if you put the rings onto each other." Prince Mika stated.**

 **"OK, I'll say my vows again until I get them right. I Anna Kruspe promise you Larten infront of these assembled witnesses that I shall stand by your side in battle, I shall share no other coffin but yours, I will love you and no other, I give you this ring in recognition of these promises, may this ring serve as a reminder of the promises that we have made to one another and like this ring may these promises never be broken." I repeated clearly.**

 **"Perfect, you got it spot on that time." Prince Mika praised happily.**

 **"What a relief, I felt sure that I'd gone wrong somewhere." I admitted.**

 **"No, you remembered every part of your vows and you said them in the right order too." Prince Mika reiterated.**

 **"We can work on the next part of the ceremony now. I've yet to hear what the Princes will say when they declare us to be blessed mates." I said inquisitively.**

 **"We've got an idea of what we're going to say when we declare you to be blessed mates, it'll be something along the lines of I Prince Mika Ver Leth declare that you Larten Crepsley and Anna Kruspe are now blessed mates, you've taken solumn vows and exchanged rings. By the powers granted to me as a Prince I hereby officially recognise your blessed mateship as legal according to our laws." Prince Mika said in his official voice.**

 **"That's a bit long winded isn't it Sire?" I commented.**

 **"It sounds official though doesn't it?" Prince Mika countered.**

 **"Yes it does, will all of the Princes have to say those same words to us and to the clan?" I enquired.**

 **"Each Prince will say something along those lines, I was just giving you an example of what may be said." Prince Mika remarked.**

 **"Shall we rehearse the vows again or do we need to rehearse something else?" I asked.**

 **"This is your rehearsal so practice whichever bits you think need to be practised." Prince Mika answered.**

 **"Larten, what do you think?" I asked.**

 **"I am content to rehearse our vows again but I do not think that we need to." Larten replied.**

 **"I think we've remembered them, we just have to repeat them to each other when the time comes. I'll be shaking because of my nerves but I'll hold it together." I admitted.**

 **"You will be fine, I believe in you. I know that you'll say your vows perfectly on the night." Gavnur said.**

 **"Aww, thanks Gavnur. I hope I won't mess up, I really want it to go well." I responded.**

 **"Your ceremony will go well, you just have to think positively about it going well." Gavnur said reassuringly to me.**

 **"I really want to see my ring, I think it'll be stunning just like the one I already have." I said to Gavnur.**

 **"I've seen it, it has been engraved and it also has stones set into it." Gavnur revealed**

 **"It sounds beautiful." I remarked.**

 **"It is, Seba designed it and Larten approved it. I merely picked out the box for it to go in, as I'm the best man and I'm responsible for the rings at the ceremony." Gavnur acknowledged.**

 **"I never thought that Seba would be the one to design my ring, however I trust his judgement." I stated.**

 **"Seba has many talents Anna and he knows what vampiresses like, just ask his mate and she'll tell you about all the things that he's made for her." Gavnur said in response.**

 **"I didn't even know that Seba had a mate, isn't he a bit too old for that kind of thing now?" I whispered to Gavnur.**

 **"Some vampiresses prefer an older, more experienced vampire to be their mate. I'm barely over one hundred so in vampire terms I'm young." Gavnur stated.**

 **"You're physically fit and strong so you've got no issues when it comes to satisfying a vampiress or a human female Gavnur, I enjoyed myself very much when we spent that time together." I admitted quietly to Gavnur.**

 **"I'm going to be taking Larten out with a few other Generals, call it a bachelor party or a stag night, that means you can also have some kind of bachelorette party. Anything goes at these parties and that includes sex and hiring women to strip or poledance for us." Gavnur told me.**

 **"I don't think Larten will go for it, he's not that kind of vampire." I reiterated.**

 **"Larten and I used to have some wild times in our youth, we used to go to strip clubs, we'd pay the women to take us to a private area, we'd watch them dance, then we'd hypnotise them and feed from them or we'd have a threesome or a foursome with them. We paid these women well so they didn't care what we did to them." Gavnur confessed.**

 **"That's in the past now, Larten and you have both changed since then. What you did back then is no concern of mine and it doesn't bother me. If you want to organise a batchelor party then go ahead, it will be Larten's last chance to have fun before he commits himself to me alone." I confirmed.**

 **"I'll make sure that he will be sober and he'll turn up on time for the ceremony, however what we'll be doing at the batchelor party I've yet to decide." Gavnur smirked.**

 **"Don't let any harm come to Larten, if anything were to happen to him I couldn't live with myself." I replied seriously.**

 **"I'll make sure that Larten has a good time with myself and the others who are going to be at the party. I also promise that Larten will return from the party unharmed." Gavnur assured me.**

 **"OK Gavnur, I trust you." I declared.**

 **"I think I'll stay within the Halls of Sport and watch the matches, however if it can be arranged I'll spend the day with you." I whispered in Gavnur's ear.**

 **"I'll see what I can do, I mean if Larten ends up in another vampiress's coffin then why shouldn't you also have some fun?" Gavnur asked me.**

 **"I'll speak to Larten about it, I am honest so I tell him everything." I confirmed.**

 **"I'll search for his mental signal." Gavnur remarked.**

 **I stood and watched Gavnur close his eyes and focus for a few moments, then he smiled and said:**

 **"I've located Larten, he'll be back in here within a few moments. Whenever somebody searches for him he seeks them out immediately in case of an emergency." Gavnur disclosed.**

 **"Oh right, that makes a lot of sense. When I become fully blooded I'll also be able to search for Larten's mental waves, at the moment this is something that I cannot do." I conceeded.**

 **Larten appeared beside me in a blur, I hadn't been expecting it so I jumped.**

 **"I felt you searching for me Gavnur, is there a problem?" Larten asked Gavnur.**

 **"No, we were just discussing plans for your bachelor party Larten. Anna wants to know if she can spend the day after the night of her bachelorette party with me, you'll be spending it with another clan member and Anna should get to do the same thing." Gavnur explained.**

 **"I was not planning to have a bachelor party, I am not the wild youth I once was. When it comes to Anna spending the day with you because of your past history with one another it is out of the question." Larten remarked sternly.**

 **"Tough luck Larten, I've already arranged your bachelor party so you're having one." Gavnur stated.**

 **"I do not want t-" Larten began but Gavnur interjected.**

 **"You are having a bachelor party Larten, that is an order. I am a General and I'm ordering you to join me and a few others for one last taste of freedom." Gavnur commanded.**

 **"Alright fine we shall have a party." Larten remarked, he sounded annoyed at the prospect of it.**

 **"Way to go Gavnur, that's how to deal with the grumpy old git." I sniggered, I was trying hard not to burst out laughing.**

 **"There are perks that you get when you're a General, ordering non ranked vampires is one of those perks." Gavnur replied with a grin.**

 **"Isn't Larten also a General?" I asked.**

 **"Larten used to be one yes, he was on the verge of becoming a Vampire Prince when he quit and gave it all up. Larten stormed out of the mountain, he said that he wanted nothing more to do with the Generals and that was it. Larten joined the Cirque Du Freak and that the last we saw of him until he came here with Prince Darren, Prince Darren was just his assistant at the time. We faught together in the battle when Kurda betrayed us all, after Arra's death Larten returned to the Cirque Du Freak and he left Prince Darren here to rule. I hadn't heard from Larten in a long time until I contacted him about what went down in the city, that was when you were stabbed in that fight. At least you survived to tell the tale though Anna, others may not have been so lucky." Gavnur expanded.**

 **"I faught like a proper warrior down in that disused sewer tunnel, I remember watching the remaining vampaneze fleeing from me after I killed Steve." I reminisced.**

 **"You were lethal then and you're lethal now but only when you have to be, most of the time you're calm and humble. You don't demand things either and I like that about you." Gavnur praised.**

 **"I'll take that as a compliment." I replied as I blushed slightly.**

 **"I didn't intend for you to take it any other way." Gavnur stated.**

 **Larten was still standing beside me throughout the entire conversation I'd had with Gavnur, Larten didn't seem to mind us talking with each other infront of him, I think he was just happy to be by my side. Larten had his arm around my waist and I was leaning into him with my head on his shoulder. We always stood like this, I think Larten saw it as his way of showing the clan that I was his mate. I also believed that it was a way of showing that we were united, none of the clan members had the nerve to challenge Larten for the right to mate with me either.**

 **A couple of nights later Mr Tall arrived at the mountain along with most of the Cirque Du Freak performers. I thought that some would attend but I didn't expect the majority to turn up with their suitcases and trailers one evening and ask where they could park up. The Wolf Man didn't attend, he was too dangerous but all of my friends from the Cirque had turned up and I was so happy to be reunited with them all. I had missed Evra especially, he had even brought my cat and my now very old hamster along with him. I had missed them terribly.**

 **"Oh there you are my little furball, I've missed you so much." I said to my cat.**

 **"Your animals are fine, I've looked after them very well." Evra told me.**

 **"I can see that, my hamster is getting old now unfortunately." I remarked sadly.**

 **"Could your hamster be blooded? I know that cat blood is highly toxic to vampires." Evra asked.**

 **"Maybe, but hamsters are so small it'd have to be done with extreme care." I replied.**

 **"I'll look after your pets as best as I can, I know you love them to bits." Evra reassured me.**

 **"I've got two wolves now and they've just had a litter of pups." I answered in reply.**

 **"Wolves? Are you seriously telling me that you keep wolves?" Evra asked, he sounded worried.**

 **"I don't keep them, they've chosen to stay with me. They are not pets as such they just like me." I explained.**

 **"Another vampire ability?" Evra queried.**

 **"Wolves and vampires are blood cousins yes, we share an affinity with them and wolves have saved my life more than once." I acknowledged.**

 **"They've saved your life? How?" Evra asked me so I told him the story of when I had been pushed into the river.**

 **"A wolf dragged you out of the water and kept you warm? That sounds like one smart animal to me." Evra responded.**

 **"Wolves are highly intelligent creatures." I confirmed.**

 **"I don't doubt it, you can hold my snake if you like." Evra offered as he picked up his sleeping, slithery friend.**

 **"Sure, I'll just put the hamster back into the cage first." I stated.**

 **I returned my hamster to its cage, it went inside its nest and curled up into a little ball. My cat was now lying down on a cushion that Evra had in his hammock and that left me free to hold Evra's snake, the snake had grown considerably since I had seen it last. The snake could go around my neck now like a scarf.**

 **"I could become the first vampiress to set a new serpentine fashion trend." I commented.**

 **"My snake suits you." Evra laughed.**

 **"Yes, it does rather. The colour of your snake matches my eyes." I joked, then we took one look at each other and burst out into a fit of giggles.**

 **"I've bought a suit to wear when you and Larten tie the knot, I thought I'd better wear something smart." Evra told me.**

 **"You can wear your snake like a tie." I suggested humourously.**

 **"I hadn't thought of that." Evra replied.**

 **"I've got a dress that is silver, white and blue to wear." I stated.**

 **"You'll look amazing in that." Evra commented.**

 **"I hope so, it is being made for me. I've got a tiara too and matching jewellery." I remarked.**

 **"I wonder what Larten is wearing." Evra said curiosly.**

 **"He has a suit to wear I think, maybe he'll vamp it up a bit." I remarked with a grin.**

 **"I would hope so, I would like to see how vampires dress up for events such as this." Evra concluded.**

 **"Well the vampiresses wear long dresses or gowns and the vampires wear suits and cloaks or capes and top hats. Think Victorian aristocracy and how they used to dress." I replied.**

 **"OK, I just hope that my suit is good enough." Evra commented.**

 **"It'll be fine, trust me. Lots of vampires will be wearing suits and ties of some description." I reassured Evra.**

 **"I've never been to a wedding of any description before so I wasn't sure what to wear. Mr Tall told me to wear a suit or my very best clothes so I bought a dark suit and a bright red tie, I thought that red would feature heavily because Mr Crepsley always wears red." Evra told me.**

 **"It sounds like a perfect outfit to me, you'll look great." I replied.**

 **"You'd better go and speak to Larten, he will expect the performers to thank him for their invitations." I said.**

 **"That's a good point, I haven't spoken with Mr Crepsley yet because I've missed you a lot so I wanted to catch up with you first." Evra told me.**

 **"Aww, you're so sweet to say that Evra. I've missed all of the Cirque Du Freak performers but I've missed you the most." I admitted.**

 **"We were very close back then, I thought of you as one of my best friends." Evra remarked as he hugged me, he wasn't so much a snake boy now but rather a snake man because he'd grown up. I however didn't look any different at all apart from the scars I'd earnt in fights with vampaneze.**

 **"You haven't changed at all Anna, you still look like a young lady." Evra remarked.**

 **"I only age one year for every five years that passes, I'm almost thirty two in human years but I don't look like I'm that old." I commented.**

 **"So that's why Mr Crepsley looks like he's only forty something, I bet he's much older than that though." Evra claimed.**

 **"Larten is nearly two hundred years old I think, I haven't asked him what his exact age is." I admitted.**

 **"Do you know where he is?" Evra asked me.**

 **"No, he left to go to the hall for something to eat but where he is now I couldn't tell you." I conceeded.**

 **"I'll go and search for him." Evra replied.**

 **"Don't get lost, this mountain has many unexplored tunnels and if you go the wrong way then you'll never find your way back to the halls." I warned.**

 **"OK, I'll ask for somebody to guide me around until I memorise the route." Evra stated.**

 **"I've got to go and greet the other Cirque Du Freak performers who're just arriving." I remarked.**

 **"I'll catch up with you later then Anna, it has been good to catch up with you my friend. May I see the ring you've got?" Evra requested, I held up my hand and my ring flashed as if it were a star in the sky.**

 **"Wow, I've never seen a ring like that before. What is it made from?" Evra asked me.**

 **"I think it is a platinum band with a large diamond set into it along with sapphires on either side of the diamond. I'm not one hundred percent certain because Seba designed it for me, it has also been engraved on the inside." I revealed.**

 **"I love how it catches the light, it is so sparkly." Evra remarked.**

 **"I think that's the point, it is meant to be seen from across the halls. Any vampire will be able to see it even if they're a few hundred yards away from me, it has been designed to make a statement." I replied.**

 **"It certainly proves one thing and that is how rich Mr Crepsley must be if he can afford to buy stones that size. I've never in my life seen a precious stone that big." Evra sighed.**

 **"I was dumbfounded when I saw it, I couldn't believe how big the central diamond is either. It matches the necklace and hair slides which I've got already too." I revealed.**

 **"You're going to look so beautiful when you get married, Mr Crepsley is very lucky that he has you by his side." Evra admitted.**

 **"I think I'm the one who is lucky to have him, it hasn't been an easy road either. I hope that you'll find love someday Evra, everybody deserves to be loved." I remarked honestly.**

 **"I'm sure that I'll find somebody, do any of your vampire friends want to date a snake and human hybrid?" Evra asked me.**

 **"Not that I know of, all the vampiresses are spoken for I believe, there are so few of them and because of this they never stay single for long. Snake blood is toxic to vampires too, if you got hurt and your blood infected a vampire it could kill them." I explained.**

 **"Oh yeah, I forgot about that. I couldn't be blooded in that case because we'd both die." Evra sighed.**

 **"Yeah, more than likely that'd be the case. I'll catch up with you later Evra. Ask Gavnur to be your guide because he knows his way around, I've got to go and catch up with the other performers." I reiterated before I handed Evra's snake back to him and went off to greet the other Cirque Du Freak members...**


	23. Chapter 22

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 22**

 **I made my way into one of the main halls because a lot of the Cirque Du Freak performers and Mr Tall were in there, Seba was trying to accommodate them all. If you've ever tried to park a trailer or a campervan on uneven, rocky, icy, snow covered ground then you'll know what a pain in the bum it can be.**

 **There were very few areas that were suitable for parking vans and trailers on so Seba was trying to figure out exactly where the Cirque Du Freak members were going to leave their vans and trailers. In the end they all had to be parked in a field that was about a hundred yards or so from the mountain, it was on the other side of the trees. The performers had to park in the field and then walk back up into the entrance of the mountain, Seba was able to provide quarters for all of the performers although some performers had to share a room, hammocks were provided for them all too because none of the performers wished to sleep in coffins and that was fair enough.**

 **I walked into the hall and all of the Cirque Du Freak performers were pleased to see me, I'd missed them all but Mr Tall was who I really wanted to catch up with. I noticed that Larten was also in the hall chatting to some of the performers, I walked over to him and he wrapped his arms around me. I think it was a sweet gesture, Larten wouldn't normally hug me in public so I held him and rested my head on his shoulder.**

 **"I love you." I whispered in Larten's ear, I couldn't think of what else to tell him.**

 **"I just want to offer you both my congratulations, it is clear to me how much you love one another." Mr Tall said to us.**

 **"Thank you for your kind wishes and thank you for coming, we were not sure if you would be able to pass this treacherous terrain." Larten remarked.**

 **"I have many talents, myself and the other performers are looking forward to watching your upcoming ceremony very much. It is almost unheard of for a vampire to enter into a blessed mateship agreement, for you to enter two is remarkable in itself Larten. I just hope that this one works out better for you than your previous agreement." Mr Tall replied.**

 **"This blessed mateship is destined to work out just fine. I have designed it to be that way." an unfamiliar voice stated behind us.**

 **"Mr Tiny, I am glad that you could make it." Larten said politely.**

 **"I would not miss an opportunity to see my own work taking place. You two are supposed to be together." Mr Tiny told us.**

 **"What is your game? I've heard a lot of things about you Mr Tiny." I stated.**

 **"There is no game, I just want to see a vampiress ruling the clan. When a vampiress rules the clan she and she alone will determine its fate by her own actions." Mr Tiny remarked cryptically.**

 **"You want me to rule the clan?" I queried.**

 **"I want both of you to rule the clan, I also want to see another war faught between yourselves and the vampaneze. The outcome of the war will depend entirely upon your decisions when the time comes." Mr Tiny explained to me, he had malice in his voice.**

 **"I don't like the sound of that." I admitted.**

 **"It won't happen for another few centuries yet, I'm just setting the wheels in motion. You two joining together as one is an essential part of my big plans, I need both of you." Mr Tiny stated.**

 **"What if one or both of us die before you have the chance to put your plans into action?" I queried.**

 **"Then I'll find another pair and they'll fulfil the roles that you are destined to fill." Mr Tiny responded with a slight cackle.**

 **"Very well." I conceeded, inside I was panicking.**

 **"Do not concern yourself with Mr Tiny and his prophecies, none of them have come to pass so far." Larten told me when we were alone in our quarters.**

 **"Why would he say such things to us?" I queried.**

 **"He is evil, he likes to cause damage everywhere he goes. The best thing to do is to ignore what he says or take it with a very large pince of salt." Larten advised me.**

 **"Lady Evanna isn't evil is she?" I asked.**

 **"No, she is not. If you treat her with respect then she does the same, she has actually been trying to prevent her father from making his prophecies happen." Larten told me.**

 **"Oh right, isn't tonight the night of your bachelor party?" I asked.**

 **"I believe it is, I had quite forgotten about it in all honesty for I take little pleasure in such things." Larten stated.**

 **Just then there was a knock on the door of our quarters, we were kissing so we ignored the door and focused upon each other. When there was another, much louder knock Larten opened the door.**

 **Gavnur had arrived followed by Seba, Prince Mika, Prince Vancha, Prince Darren, Vanez Blaine and another vampire that I didn't know.**

 **"It is time for your bachelor party Larten. This will be a party that you'll never forget." Gavnur smirked.**

 **"I am really looking forward to it Gavnur, I cannot wait to find out what you have got planned for my last evening of freedom." Larten remarked sarcastically.**

 **"Anna, don't worry about a thing." Gavnur told me.**

 **"You deserve to go and have some fun, I trust you." I remarked.**

 **Larten kissed me deeply infront of Gavnur and the others which I hadn't been expecting, he also held me in his arms for a long time.**

 **"Larten if you don't come with us now we'll drag you along the tunnels using a rope." Gavnur stated as he winked at me.**

 **"You'd better go, I'd hate to see you embarrassed like that." I said.**

 **"They would not dare do anything of the sort to me." Larten reassured me before we shared another even more passionate kiss.**

 **"Right guys, you heard the man. Seba give me the rope if you please." Prince Mika said and Seba handed him the rope.**

 **I stood back and watched as Gavnur and Prince Mika attempted to tie the rope around Larten's waist and pull him away from me. It was the funniest thing I'd ever seen in my whole life and I was in stitches watching Gavnur and Prince Mika tying the rope whilst the other two Vampire Princes and Vanez firmly held Larten so he couldn't resist.**

 **"Right lads, pull away." Prince Vancha said and the other vampires grabbed the rope and literally pulled Larten out of our quarters, along the corridor and down the tunnels. Some of the other vampires were watching the specticle and every one of them was laughing, myself included. I figured that this must have been planned in advance, it wouldn't have happened otherwise.**

 **"Have fun guys but please bring Larten back to me in one piece." I called out.**

 **"Don't worry Anna, we'll take good care of your pledged mate." Gavnur answered back before he and the others vanished in a blur.**

 **I was left alone in our quarters, I went next door to feed and check on my wolves and their pups. All of the wolf pups seemed to be growing and doing well, I gave Sasha a big bull's carcass as a meal and she ripped into it instantly. I examined the wolf pups whilst Sasha was eating, they all looked to be in good health and they were growing fast.**

 **I left the wolves alone to finish eating and I went to the Halls of Sport, I was hoping to watch some duels on the Bars. I then realised that Vanez was at Larten's bachelor party so there would be no matches tonight, Vanez was the referee and without a referee there would be no matches taking place.**

 **I returned to the Hall of Khledon Lurt and I had something to eat, I finally caught up with Kiera and Jenna too because they were also in the hall eating.**

 **"What are we doing for my bachelorette party?" I asked Jenna between mouthfuls of stew.**

 **"No idea, should we pay some of the Generals to strip for us?" Jenna suggested by way of a joke.**

 **"No thanks, I don't want to see anything like that. I only have eyes for my pledged mate." I replied.**

 **"I was just messing with you, my mate would kill me if I did anything like that." Jenna remarked.**

 **"Who are you with now?" I asked, I was curious.**

 **"I'm with Vanez Blaine, didn't you know?" Jenna countered.**

 **"No, I had no idea whatsoever. I knew he had a mate but I didn't know who it was. He's really kind and whenever I've got a problem I run to him, he always has good advice to give me." I explained.**

 **"I know, Vanez told me that he fixed your last bust up with Larten. We haven't been together for long but it is going well so far." Jenna confirmed.**

 **"How about you Kiera, who is your mate?" I asked her.**

 **"You can't tell anybody this, it stays between us if I tell you because I don't want any special treatment. I'm in a mateship agreement with Prince Arrow, we've got a five year term and so far we've been seeing each other for about a year. We keep it private because that's our wish." Kiera confessed.**

 **"Prince Arrow is so grumpy and stern all the time, he needs to lighten up a bit." I responded.**

 **"Actually when you get to know him he's like a gentle giant, he's got a heart of gold when you break down his tough exterior and he treats me well. I'm not at all like Sophie, I don't take liberties like she does." Kiera told us.**

 **"Hence why you don't sit on his throne wearing a coronet like Sophie does, she is a spoilt brat in my opinion." I stated.**

 **"Sophie is spoilt but then again that is Prince Mika's problem, he gives into her all the time. Even Larten put his foot down but whenever he did that Sophie would complain to Prince Mika and he'd give her whatever she wanted." Kiera acknowledged.**

 **"Larten did tell me about that, he's glad that Sophie isn't his responsibility any longer." I concluded.**

 **"I wouldn't want to be responsible for her either, what Prince Mika sees in her I'll never understand." Kiera stated.**

 **"You can't help who you fall in love with, sometimes opposites attract." I said.**

 **"Yes, that's true. Maybe Prince Mika feels sorry for her and he feels that it is his duty as a Prince to protect her." Jenna added.**

 **"Possibly but unless we ask him we're not likely to ever find out, not that it is any of our business to be honest." I concluded.**

 **"Oh well, let's go and have some fun because I'm bored. Maybe we could steal some of the Prince's personal wine." Jenna suggested.**

 **"No, we don't need to steal any of it. I'll ask Prince Arrow for a couple of bottles, he's bound to give me some, I am his mate after all." Kiera remarked.**

 **"Bring enough back here to share please Kiera." I called out as Kiera went off to go and fetch some bottles of the Prince's personal wine.**

 **Jenna and myself sat in the hall and waited for Kiera to return with some of the Prince's personal wine, it was rumoured to taste better than anything that was offered to the general clan members. Very few vampires got to try the Prince's personal wine, it was meant to be enjoyed only by the Princes but sometimes their mates got some too.**

 **Waiting for Kiera to come back from the Prince's Dome seemed to take forever, we wondered why she'd been held up, however she was probably spending some time with her mate. The Princes are always working, they don't really have time to spend with their mates until all of their business has been completed. The Prince's private quarters are always a hive of activity after the Princes retire for the night, this is when they spend quality time with their mates.**

 **I wasn't surprised that Kiera was taking her time bringing us the wine, she hadn't spent much time with her mate recently so she was probably catching up with him. I wondered what the Prince's private quarters looked like, I'd never been inside them but I'd been told that they were luxurious, warm and decorated with tapestries on the walls. The Princes had really nice coffins with fur blankets and other things like that, they also had guards who protected them and assistants who served their meals and washed their clothes for them.**

 **The Princes had a great life and had I not fallen in love with Larten I'd quite happily have accepted a Prince as my mate, however all of the Princes were spoken for and in mateship agreements. No Prince ever stayed single for long, in fact some of the Princes had a waiting list. The Prince would work his way down the list until all of the vampiresses on the list had been their mate, that way it was fair and every vampiress had a chance. Doing it this way kept the clan together and it minimised fights breaking out, the last thing the Princes wanted was vampiresses fighting to the death over the right to mate with them.**

 **Kiera came and found us, she was carrying a basket with her.**

 **"Prince Arrow gave me one bottle of white wine and one bottle of red wine from his private collection to share between the three of us, that's the best I could do." Kiera said as she opened both of the bottles.**

 **"We need some wine glasses or mugs to drink it out of." I said.**

 **"No we don't, I've got goblets from the Prince's High Table for us to use instead of mugs." Kiera remarked as she took three goblets out of the basket that she'd carried the bottles of wine in.**

 **"Kiera, you are the best. We must all thank Prince Arrow for his gifts when we see him next." I remarked as I sipped my wine, I'd picked the white wine because I preferred the taste of it to red wine. Red wine was too strong for me, it was fine in cooking but I couldn't drink it on its own.**

 **"What do you think of it ladies?" Jenna asked us between mouthfuls of wine, it didn't last long.**

 **"It tastes so good I want another gobletful." I answered as I helped myself to yet more white wine.**

 **"Steady on Anna, we want to try it too." Jenna complained as she filled up her empty goblet with white wine (she'd already had a gobletful of red wine)**

 **"Thanks for sorting this out for us Kiera, we owe you one." Jenna stated.**

 **"That isn't all I've managed to arrange for us, I've had a discussion with Prince Arrow. This is a special occasion and and as such Prince Arrow has granted all three of us permission to sleep within the Prince's private quarters, we can go there whenever we wish and he'll be waiting for us." Kiera revealed.**

 **"Really? We get to sleep where the Princes sleep?" I asked, stunned.**

 **"Yeah, all three of us will be curled up with Prince Arrow. The golden rule is whatever happens in his private quarters stays in his private quarters. You must not gossip about this or brag about it either, Prince Arrow is doing this for me because I asked him to grant you one last taste of freedom." Kiera explained to Jenna and I.**

 **"I'm very grateful to Prince Arrow for this, we'd better not keep him waiting." I smirked and all three of us headed towards the Prince's Dome.**

 **The Guards who were outside the Prince's Dome searched us and then we were permitted into the Prince's Dome, even the Prince's mates had to be searched because nobody was exempt from the new security procedures. If the Princes left the Prince's Dome then they too got searched upon re-entry, due to Kurda's betrayal none of the clan were taking any chances.**

 **We stood in the centre of the Dome and only Prince Arrow was in attendance, Prince Paris was still making his way to the mountain as he wished to attend my blessed mateship ceremony and the other Princes were attending Larten's bachelor party.**

 **"Welcome ladies, all of you are looking so beautiful tonight too." Prince Arrow said by way of a greeting.**

 **"Thank you Sire for the wine, for your compliments and for inviting us here." I replied.**

 **"I am here alone tonight and I thought it'd be nice if my mate and her two friends joined me in my private quarters, even Princes need company sometimes." Prince Arrow remarked.**

 **"It was kind of you to invite all three of us, the wine tasted amazing by the way." I stated as I bravely walked over to Prince Arrow's throne. Kiera was standing behind me and Jenna was on my right hand side.**

 **"Kiera, Anna and Jenna please follow me and I'll show you around my private quarters." Prince Arrow instructed us, Kiera went ahead as she was Prince Arrow's mate and I followed behind her with Jenna walking beside me.**

 **Prince Arrow opened the door to his private quarters and he led all three of us inside, it was a rather large room that had weapons hanging on the walls and chairs for guests to sit on.**

 **"Welcome, make yourselves comfortable." Prince Arrow told us. I sat down on a large armchair that was near to the fireplace, a fire was blazing and that kept the room warm.**

 **"Now then ladies what are we going to do to entertain ourselves?" Jenna asked mischieviously.**

 **"Prince Arrow will think of something no doubt." Kiera replied.**

 **"Prince Arrow is your mate, you can do things with him that I cannot." Jenna sighed.**

 **"Don't worry Jenna, we won't tell Vanez what you've been up to. I told you that what happens in here stays in here." Kiera reassured Jenna.**

 **"Excuse me Sire," Jenna began nervously.**

 **"Yes, what is it Jenna?" Prince Arrow asked Jenna.**

 **"May I please have the honour of sharing a kiss with you?" Jenna nervously requested.**

 **"You may kiss me if you wish, I have no objections." Prince Arrow answered.**

 **Jenna nervously stepped forward and Prince Arrow invited her to sit on his lap, Jenna sat down on Prince Arrow's lap then she turned so that she was facing him and then he kissed her lips gently because she was shaking. I tried not to watch Jenna and Prince Arrow kissing, I felt like it should have been conducted in private but what Prince Arrow did in his quarters was up to him.**

 **I could hear little moans that were escaping from Jenna's mouth as she and Prince Arrow deepened their kiss. It made me want to join in with them but of course I couldn't. Eventually the kiss came to an end and Jenna stood up, it took her a moment to regain her balance before she walked over to a chair and sat on it.**

 **"Kiera, come over here and spend some quality time with me." Prince Arrow instructed, Kiera walked over and she too sat down upon Prince Arrow's lap.**

 **"I've missed you a lot." Kiera said to Prince Arrow.**

 **"I'm sorry that business has prevented me from spending much time with you recently but I'll make it up to you." Prince Arrow replied in a hushed tone.**

 **"Just kiss me, I love it when you kiss me." Kiera whispered to Prince Arrow, he then kissed her lovingly. I hadn't seen this side of Prince Arrow before, he was sweet and he clearly loved Kiera very much. I could tell that this was the case because of the way that they looked at one another.**

 **Kiera and Prince Arrow kissed for a long time, they seemed to match each other well as mates and I was happy for them because they were happy together.**

 **When Kiera and Prince Arrow stopped kissing they sat together for quite a while and talked softly to each other, I was having a conversation with Jenna so that we didn't get bored.**

 **"What was it like to kiss Prince Arrow?" I asked out of curiousity.**

 **"It was like nothing that I've ever experienced before, he is so gentle that when he kisses you that you barely feel it at first." Jenna answered.**

 **"That is the complete opposite to my pledged mate Larten, when he kisses you he makes sure that you know it, he's very intense and passionate." I revealed.**

 **"I couldn't handle that, I can't get the hang of kissing at all." Jenna remarked sadly.**

 **"Is your mate a good kisser?" I asked.**

 **"Vanez is OK, he understands that I'm quite inexperienced so he takes it slow with me. He never pushes me and he goes at my pace so that he won't hurt me." Jenna explained.**

 **"Larten takes me beyond anything I can describe, he is so powerful and he makes me scream as wave upon wave of orgasmic pleasure hits me. We are very also adventurous and Larten is always looking for new ways to satisfy me." I admitted openly.**

 **"Your pledged mate sounds like an incredible lover, you're lucky to have him all to yourself." Jenna replied.**

 **"I've never had it so good, having sex with Larten is like touching the sky and entering paradise whilst you're still alive." I commented honestly.**

 **Kiera got up from Prince Arrow's lap then she came over and chatted with us for a while, she wanted me to tell her what I had told Jenna so I told her everything.**

 **"Hearing you talk about your mate like that makes me want to experience sex with him for myself." Jenna said.**

 **"You know that isn't possible Jenna, Larten would never have sex with either of us and our mates wouldn't look kindly upon it either." Kiera said.**

 **"May I go and spend some time with Prince Arrow alone now?" I asked Kiera.**

 **"Sure, he's waiting for you to go to him." Kiera replied. I got up from the chair I had been sitting in and I made my way over to where Prince Arrow was sitting.**

 **"Where would you like me to sit Sire?" I asked Prince Arrow.**

 **"You may sit upon my lap if you wish to." Prince Arrow replied so I sat on his lap and then I turned to face him. I looked into Prince Arrow's dark eyes, he had long black hair and tattoos of arrows going down both of his arms. Prince Arrow looked rough but he wasn't like that at all, he was gentle and when we went palm to palm his hand was so much bigger than mine.**

 **Prince Arrow leant forward and he kissed me, I kissed him back and before I knew what was happening we were making out with one another. I thought that we would kiss but not this passionately, I hoped that Kiera wouldn't mind me sharing a kiss with her mate.**

 **When we stopped kissing we sat together for a while, Prince Arrow had his arms around me and I snuggled up with him because I was tired. I closed my eyes and imagined that I was with Larten, I hoped that he was having a good time at his bachelor party. As for my bachelorette party it wasn't really a party it was just the three of us hanging out with Prince Arrow.**

 **"I'm tired Sire." I yawned.**

 **"Perhaps then it is time to retire to my coffin, would you care to join me?" Prince Arrow asked as he stood up. I was being held by him in his arms.**

 **"I'd like to join you very much, however my pledged mate would go mad if I did that. I could never betray him because I love him too much." I explained to Prince Arrow.**

 **"I understand perfectly, however what happens between us will stay between us. You have my word as a Prince that I will never reveal to any of the clan that we've spent time together." Prince Arrow reassured me.**

 **"I'd feel really guilty about it, I feel guilty enough already. I shouldn't have kissed you Sire because you are not my mate." I stated.**

 **"I understand Anna, however I would still like to share my coffin with you, my mate and your friend. My coffin is big enough for the four of us to sleep in, also how many times in your life are you going to have this opportunity?" Prince Arrow asked me.**

 **"That is very true Sire, I won't have an opportunity like this again. I give you my consent, I will join you inside your coffin and whatever happens inside your coffin stays in your coffin." I acknowledged.**

 **Prince Arrow led me to where his coffin was, it looked very comfortable and inviting. Prince Arrow stripped down to his underwear and he got into his coffin, Kiera and Jenna joined him then I stripped off and got into the coffin also. There was enough room for all of us, however not all of us could lay directly next to Prince Arrow at the same time, we had to shift ourselves around and take it in turns.**

 **"What happens now?" I asked Prince Arrow.**

 **"I'll mate with all of you individually until I have satisfied your sexual desires." Prince Arrow remarked.**

 **"Whilst you're mating with one of us do the others have to watch? I prefer to mate in private without being watched, I can be quite vocal too." I explained.**

 **"We can mate alone if you prefer, there'll be more room to move around if it is just yourself and I in the coffin." Prince Arrow remarked, then he flicked his hand as a sign for Kiera and Jenna to leave us alone which they did without question.**

 **"Your mate doesn't mind does she?" I enquired.**

 **"No, she doesn't mind. I am a Vampire Prince so Kiera doesn't question my decisions when it comes to who I mate with." Prince Arrow remarked.**

 **"What happens now?" I asked nervously.**

 **"Now that we're alone we can mate with each other, I'll satisfy you and if you are a bit vocal then I don't mind." Prince Arrow confirmed, then we kissed each other and I got into a comfortable position.**

 **I lay back in the coffin because I had been sitting up, Prince Arrow then adjusted himself so that he was on top of me. We kept on kissing one another, I could feel Prince Arrow's erect manhood brushing up against my own private area, he was still kissing me. I widened my legs so that Prince Arrow would be able to penetrate me easier which he did, he wasn't as big as Larten so when he was inside me I couldn't feel it as much as I usually did. Prince Arrow started to thrust in and out of me slowly, I moaned softly because it felt good. Prince Arrow sped up his thrusts and we rolled over until I was on top of him, I rocked my hips in time with his thrusts. I hoped that Prince Arrow would be able to make me orgasm.**

 **When Prince Arrow did make me have an orgasm it wasn't anywhere near as powerful as the ones I usually had but it was good enough to make me moan his name softly, I didn't want to be too loud in case I was heard by other clan members. Prince Arrow and I mated for a couple of hours, he was a good lover but he wasn't anywhere near as good as Larten.**

 **"Did you enjoy that?" Prince Arrow asked me when we'd finished mating.**

 **"It was different Sire, you are far gentler than Larten is and you take your time too. Larten is all about speed and he is like an animal, he doesn't stop until I am completely satisfied and we're both exhausted." I revealed.**

 **"I know that Larten is well known for being able to satisfy women, I've heard many things about him and his skills." Prince Arrow told me.**

 **"You've probably heard me crying out for more too, I think most of the clan have heard Larten and I when we mate." I admitted.**

 **"Yes, I've heard the two of you mating. You are very vocal Anna but I cannot blame you for that, Larten likes to hear his mates scream when he makes them orgasm." Prince Arrow added.**

 **"I think it boosts his ego, I think Larten thinks that he's the best and when he has vampiresses screaming his name it just adds fuel to his ego fire." I commented.**

 **"That is probably true however Larten is very talented, you can't deny that he is highly skilled when it comes to sex." Prince Arrow responded.**

 **"Oh yes Sire, I agree with you. Larten is incredible. The first time that we mated it was like I had gone to paradise whilst I was still alive." I explained.**

 **"I don't need to know the ins and outs of your sexual experiences." Prince Arrow remarked.**

 **"Sorry Sire." I apologised.**

 **"I need to get some rest, I've got a lot of business to attend to and most of it is to do with your upcoming mateship ceremony." Prince Arrow stated as he pulled a fur blanket over both of us and pulled me into his arms.**

 **"What about your mate Sire?" I asked curiously.**

 **"She's asleep already, I covered her with my cloak so she'll be warm. I've decided to share my coffin with you Anna. I also gave Jenna a fur blanket to use, despite having a fire lit the stone walls make it hard to keep our quarters warm. Our vampiric blood keeps us from freezing but it can only do so much." Prince Arrow stated as I made myself comfortable, I rested my head on Prince Arrow's shoulder, I pulled the blanket over our naked bodies until we were properly covered and then I settled down and went to sleep.**

 **When I woke up I was still snuggled into Prince Arrow's body, I had no idea what the time was. I couldn't remember the last time that I'd felt this comfortable, I didn't want to get up but eventually I had to. I got up when Prince Arrow decided to get up, I had a wash and then I left the Prince's Dome. I had to eat and I wanted to catch up with Larten to find out how his bachelor party went.**

 **I was still wearing the same outfit from the day before so I got changed after I'd taken a long dip under the waterfalls. I fed my wolves and then I went to eat something. When I got down to the hall where the food was I saw Larten, he didn't look very well at all.**

 **"Hi Larten." I said by way of a greeting.**

 **"Good evening my beloved. I am in a rather sorry state, I had one barrel of ale too many and now I am paying the price for it." Larten said, he sounded tired.**

 **"You need to go and sleep it off, I only had a couple of goblets of wine so I am fine." I replied as I ate my breakfast, I had a bowlful of honey and nuts with some fresh fruit.**

 **"I agree, I need to sleep. Gavnur and his idea of a good time is not what I would call fun. We were playing cards and other drinking games and that is why I have not slept at all." Larten explained to me.**

 **"I didn't have much fun either, I spent some time with Kiera and Jenna. We ended up in Prince Arrow's quarters, he gave us some wine from his personal stores but that was about it." I remarked, I was skipping the part about where I'd slept for obvious reasons.**

 **"You were in the private quarters of Prince Arrow?" Larten asked me suspiciously.**

 **"Prince Arrow invited all three of us to join him, Kiera is his mate so she was the one who persuaded Prince Arrow to share some of his wine with us. We all spent some quality time with him too, Prince Arrow is a really kind vampire. In many ways he is like you actually." I replied by way of a compliment.**

 **"I am glad that you found a way to keep yourself occupied whilst we were apart from each other. I cannot wait to mate with you again, however we must wait until I am in a fit state to do so. In my current condition I would not be able to perform as well as I should like to." Larten told me.**

 **"I understand, however when we do mate again you'd better make it worth waiting for." I remarked cheekily.**

 **"Oh it will be, do not concern yourself with things like that. I will make sure that I take you to a place that is beyond paradise." Larten acknowledged.**

 **"That sounds perfect, I cannot wait to experience it." I concluded.**

 **"When I am no longer feeling the effects of the ale I have consumed I will be able to perform my duties as your pledged mate once again." Larten reassured me.**

 **"It isn't long now before our ceremony, we have still got a few loose ends to tie up but most of the preparations are complete." I remarked with slight excitement in my tone.**

 **"I will go and check on everything when I have recovered, I am going now to our quarters to sleep off the effects of the ale. I will speak with you later on." Larten stated as he got up and headed for our temporary quarters. I finished off my meal and went to check on my wolves, Sasha and the pups were thriving and the pups looked as though they had doubled in size.**

 **I had quite forgotten how quickly baby animals grow, I made sure that Sasha was producing plenty of milk for the pups by feeding her twice as much meat as usual. I remembered how much better I'd felt after the mother wolf I met had fed me, her milk had been warm and energising. If not for that wolf I doubt I'd have survived, wolves had saved my life more than once and now it was my job to make sure that all of Sasha's pups lived.**

 **After I had finished checking in with my wolves I decided to go and catch up with Gavnur, I expected that his head would be just as sore as Larten's was. I wanted to thank Gavnur for keeping his promise to me by returning Larten in one piece. I found Gavnur in the Halls of Sport, he and Vanez both looked like they were hungover.**

 **"Gavnur, you look terrible." I said, I was stating the obvious.**

 **"I feel worse than I look believe me, I'm never going to consume that amount of ale in one session again." Gavnur groaned.**

 **"Vanez, what have you got to say for yourself?" I asked sternly.**

 **"I drunk four barrels of ale, I'm feeling ill and Larten isn't much better off than I am because he also consumed a fair amount of ale." Vanez comfirmed, he looked very pale.**

 **"It serves you right for drinking so much, I've got zero sympathy for you. I had two goblets of wine and that was it, I know my limits." I stated.**

 **"The Princes are even worse off than we are, you should have seen Prince Mika when he staggered back to the Prince's Dome. Prince Vancha also got very drunk, I expect that Prince Arrow will have something to say about it because you know what he's like." Gavnur told me.**

 **"Like I said, you've only got yourselves to blame for this. I've got to catch up on my duties so I'll see you two later on when you've sobered up." I replied before I left the two hungover vampires to nurse their sore heads.**

 **I thought that all of these vampires knew better than to get that drunk, it takes a lot of ale to get a vampire drunk as well. Somehow I think they drunk a lot more than they were letting on and Seba was nowhere to be seen. I assumed that Seba was also sleeping off the effects of a hangover, it wouldn't have surprised me at all if that had been the case.**

 **I wasn't exactly sure what duties I had to perform because Seba usually assigned them to me. I asked around but none of the clan seemed to know what they were doing either, without Seba organising everything the whole mountain ground to a standstill almost. The only clan members who were certain about what they were doing were the Generals and the Guards, they had their usual business to attend to but all the other clan members were at a loose end. I went to the Prince's Dome to ask the Princes if they had any specific duties that they needed me to perform, only Prince Arrow was around because the others were all asleep.**

 **"I'm not sure what duties I'm supposed to be performing and Seba is asleep, do you need me to do anything for you Sire?" I asked Prince Arrow, he was sitting on his throne and Sophie was sitting on Prince Mika's throne.**

 **"No, I think I'm OK. I do not believe that I need your assistance at this time but thank you for coming to ask." Prince Arrow replied, I could have sworn he winked at me but I didn't mention it.**

 **I bowed to Prince Arrow as it was customary and then I left the Prince's Dome. I felt strange bowing to Prince Arrow when just a few hours earlier I'd been asleep next to him, also being a lady I always thought that bowing was more of a man's thing to do. I didn't say anything about it, it isn't my place to question customs that have been in place for the past seven hundred years or more.**

 **I was walking back down the tunnel that led away from the Prince's Dome when Prince Arrow appeared at my side. I stopped walking and I wondered to myself what Prince Arrow wanted.**

 **"Sire, do you require my assistance after all?" I asked.**

 **"No, I do not require your assistance I just wanted to speak with you alone." Prince Arrow remarked.**

 **"Shall we go to where my wolves are resting? We'll be alone there." I suggested.**

 **"Very well, I'll follow you because I'm not sure where your wolves have their den." Prince Arrow stated as he followed me down the tunnel and to the quarters that had been taken over by Sasha, Shadow and their litter.**

 **I led Prince Arrow to where my wolves were living, the wolf pups were getting a bit big to all fit into the coffin at the same time. I was surprised that Sasha had given birth inside my coffin, I thought she'd have given birth next to it because there was more room next to it than inside it.**

 **"This is the wolf den." I said to Prince Arrow just as I opened the door to the quarters.**

 **"It smells like a wolf den, I'd know that smell anywhere." Prince Arrow remarked as we entered inside.**

 **"The pups have all got homes now, I'm just waiting for them to grow big enough to leave their mother before they are given to those who have asked for one." I explained as I picked up one of the pups and cuddled it, the pup was so fluffy that when it curled up it looked like a hairball.**

 **"Do they have names yet?" Prince Arrow asked as he too picked up a pup and stroked it.**

 **"The parents are called Sasha and Shadow and so far the pups haven't go names because I haven't checked which are boys and which are girls yet." I replied.**

 **"Just use names that are suitable for both males and females until you're sure what you've got." Prince Arrow remarked.**

 **"OK, I've called the one I'm holding Hairball because that's what this pup looks like when its curled up." I began.**

 **"They all look like hairballs when they're curled up, you have to think of a better name for that wolf than Hairball." Prince Arrow told me.**

 **"Fine, I'll think of some better names for the wolf pups and I'll let you know what I decide upon. What was it you wanted to talk to me about?" I asked by way of changing the subject.**

 **"I don't really want to talk at all Anna, I just wanted to see you without anybody else seeing us together. I know that some of the Generals don't treat you very well, I've heard them talking about you behind your back. These Generals have said that because you're still only a half blooded vampiress and you haven't taken the Trials of Death yet they don't consider you to be a true clan member. It doesn't matter to them who your mate is either, they won't publicly acknowledge your mateship unless they are asked to acknowledge it by a Prince in person. For these reasons Anna I've decided to offer you some extra security. Normally your wolves are good enough but as they are pre-ocupied with their litter I'm going to assign two Guards to protect you, they won't be with you when Larten is with you but they'll escort you from hall to hall, they'll stand outside your quarters and they'll step in if they hear anything inappropriate being said about you. Sophie insists upon having guards, she doesn't need them but she demanded to have them so Prince Mika gave into her demands. As for you I feel that you need a little bit of extra protection when your mate isn't with you, I would not be doing my duty as a Vampire Prince otherwise. We have to protect our clan members and if that means assigning guards to certain individuals then that is what we must do." Prince Arrow concluded.**

 **"That is kind of you Sire, however if these Guards are standing outside my shared quarters then surely they'll hear me and Larten when we're together won't they?" I asked.**

 **"They'll only be there when you're alone, you don't need them at any other time." Prince Arrow clarified.**

 **"OK, I understand. Thank you for thinking of my safety." I replied.**

 **"You're welcome." Prince Arrow remarked automatically.**

 **"Hadn't you better go back to the Prince's Dome? I'd hate to keep you away from your business for too long." I commented.**

 **"You're right, I do have a few things to attend to in the Prince's Dome this evening. Seeing as I'm on my own I've got more work to do than usual." Prince Arrow confirmed.**

 **"The other Princes will help you out as soon as they've recovered from their hangovers." I concluded.**

 **"Vampire Princes shouldn't get hungover, they should put the welfare of the clan first. I wouldn't get drunk and then neglect my duties for a whole evening, I'd remain sober and able to keep the clan together, in a crisis I can be relied upon to do what's best for the clan." Prince Arrow stated.**

 **"I know that, you're a very reliable Vampire Prince and the clan is lucky to have you ruling them Sire." I complimented Prince Arrow.**

 **"I can think of far worse options than myself, can you imagine if Gavnur were to become a Vampire Prince?" Prince Arrow asked me.**

 **"Gavnur wouldn't take the role seriously enough, he's too nice to be in charge of the clan. Gavnur would give out orders but the clan wouldn't obey him, he hasn't got it in him to rule." I said in agreement.**

 **"No, Gavnur is a good General but he's not harsh enough to be a Vampire Prince, he couldn't pass a death sentence because he's not a cold blooded killer like the other Princes are. Gavnur would show mercy too often, that isn't a bad thing in itself but sometimes the Princes can't be seen as too leniant when it comes to certain matters." Prince Arrow responded.**

 **"I know what you mean, sometimes death is the only option when it comes to protecting our clan. I'd rather see a dead enemy than a living one." I admitted.**

 **"Exactly, that is also my opinion. Gavnur wouldn't see it that way though, he'd try and spare the life of an enemy if he could. Gavnur would call it showing mercy, I'd call it living dangerously." Prince Arrow stated.**

 **"I agree with you Sire. I have killed before and I may have to kill again, however I'll only kill if its on the battlefield and not at any other time unless I'm out hunting for a meal of course." I concluded.**

 **"I understand your point of view perfectly, a lot of the clan members feel the way that you do." Prince Arrow acknowledged before he and I left the wolf den, then we went our separate ways. Prince Arrow went back to the Prince's Dome and I exited the mountain, I needed some fresh air. I hadn't been outside of the mountain in quite a while so it was nice to be able to walk around in the moonlight, I listened to the wolves in the area howling to one another.**

 **I stayed outside for ages, the halls were very smokey because the mountain didn't have proper chimneys. The smoke couldn't escape in the quantities that it needed to in order for the air to remain clear. I decided to raise the point with the Generals who would speak to the Princes on my behalf about it, I hoped that the Princes would see sense and agree to install some form of smoke extraction system.**

 **I re-entered the mountain via a different entrance because it was close to the Hall of Ceremonies. I wanted to see what the fully decorated hall looked like, I also had to go and see the General who had made my dress. My dress had been finished but I wanted to try it on and see what I looked like whilst wearing it. I hoped that it fitted me properly, I had been measured but mistakes can happen. I hoped that my dress would be perfect, I also hoped that the colours of my dress would match well with whatever Larten was wearing, I would hate to stand next to him wearing clashing colours.**

 **I knocked on the door of the General's quarters and he answered it almost immediately.**

 **"Hello, can I help you?" the General asked me.**

 **"Yes, you have made a dress for my upcoming blessed mateship ceremony. I would like to try it on please." I replied.**

 **"Oh yes, Anna isn't it? You're the vampiress who is pledged with intent to Larten Crepsley aren't you?" the General asked me.**

 **"That's right, I'm Anna." I confirmed.**

 **"Please come in, I'll just set up the screen for you so that you can get changed in privacy." the General replied.**

 **"Thank you." I remarked as I entered the General's quarters and sat down on a chair.**

 **"I'll have this screen put up in just a moment, your dress is over there on that dress making doll." the General told me, I went over to have a closer look at my dress and it truly was stunning.**

 **My dress was white and it was long but it didn't quite reach the floor, it had a long, dark blue train on it that was adorned with crystals, beads and embroidery. The top part of the dress was also covered in crystals and embroidery, it looked like I was going to be wearing the night sky. The dress had long lacey sleeves on it and it laced up at the back too, just like a corset.**

 **"This dress is so beautiful, thank you so much for making it for me." I said to the General.**

 **"I'm glad that you like your dress, it took me a long time to make. I was under strict instructions from Seba Nile to make sure that it turned out perfect." the General told me.**

 **"I am very grateful that you've made this dress for me. It is just as stunning as I imagined it." I concluded as I went behind the screen to try the dress on. It took quite a bit of effort to put the dress on but once it had been laced up it was fine. The dress fitted me well too, it made my waist look tiny and it covered up the scars that I had on my back.**

 **"What do you think now that you're wearing it?" the General asked.**

 **"I love it even more now than I did before, this dress fits me so well and it suits me. I just want to walk down the tunnel and show it off to the clan members in the hall." I replied.**

 **"You can do that if you want to but it'd ruin the suspense because hardly any of the clan knows what your dress looks like, also it is bad luck if your pledged mate sees you in your dress before the ceremony." the General remarked.**

 **"Now that I am wearing this dress I truly feel prepared to stand infront of the clan, say my vows and become Larten's blessed mate." I remarked.**

 **"You haven't got long to wait, your ceremony will be here before you know it." the General stated as he unlaced my dress at the back so that I could get changed.**

 **"I am aware of that, I feel so nervous and now that I've tried my dress on it just makes me realise that this is actually happening. It isn't a dream any longer, it is actually going to become reality." I replied as I very carefully put my dress back onto the dress making model, I didn't want it to get damaged or creased in any way.**

 **"You'll be alright. I'll be at the ceremony too and I'll be dressed in my finest attire. I have a top hat that I've wanted to wear for ages but I've never had a reason to wear it until now." the General told me.**

 **"As I understand it all the Generals will be wearing their best suits, if they haven't got a suit then they'll be wearing capes or cloaks and fine robes." the General revealed.**

 **"To be honest I don't care what any of the clan wears as long as they have a good time." I stated.**

 **"So I can wear pink trousers if I choose to?" the General asked me.**

 **"In theory you could wear them yes but I don't think that it'd go down too well." I remarked.**

 **"No, it probably wouldn't look right. I'd be thrown out by the Princes for being dressed inappropriately at such an important event." the General concluded.**

 **"Larten would go mad, I know what he's like. Larten likes to have everything in order, in his eyes it would be very disrespectful if you wore anything other than your very best clothing to our ceremony." I confirmed.**

 **"I agree, I won't let the clan down by wearing anything that isn't suitable." the General assured me.**

 **"I've got to go now, my wolves need feeding. I cannot wait for the clan to see my dress." I concluded, then I left the General's quarters and headed down the tunnel back towards the main part of the mountain.**

 **I wondered if Larten had slept off his hangover but I didn't want to disturb him. I fed my wolves and then I had my own dinner, I didn't have much to do when it came to my ceremony either. All I had to do was put my dress on, get my hair done and turn up on time. I wanted to see what Larten would be wearing, I was curious as to how vampires dressed for occasions such as this.**

 **I went to the hall where the Cirque Du Freak performers were hanging out, some of them didn't feel very comfortable about being around so many vampires which was understandable. I tried to catch up with all of the performers who I hadn't spoken with for a while, a few more of the performers had arrived recently. I hadn't been expecting these performers to come so it was such a surprise to see them all in the halls.**

 **I had an idea to provide the clan with some entertainment but I didn't know if it was going to be possible. I thought that maybe the Cirque Du Freak performers would perform their show inside one of the halls. A lot of the clan hadn't ever been to watch the Cirque Du Freak they'd only heard about it. I went and spoke with Mr Tall, he was the ringmaster after all and he chose when and where the shows were played.**

 **"Mr Tall, would** **your performers like to put on a mini show to entertain the clan?" I asked.**

 **"I guess we could show off a selection of our highlights, it could be our way of thanking you for our invitations to your blessed mateship ceremony." Mr Tall replied.**

 **"That would be great, I'm sure the clan would enjoy it." I replied.**

 **"I will speak to the performers and we'll put on a show for all of you. I would sell tickets to the clan members, however you're giving us a place to stay and all our meals I'll accept that as payment instead." Mr Tall stated, then he went over to where the performers were sat to find out who wanted to perform.**

 **I didn't tell any of the clan about the show straight away just in case it didn't go ahead, however when I got the nod from Mr TalI I let the entire clan know about the upcoming performance. The Cirque Du Freak would not perform its entire routine but a selection of the best acts had been chosen, these selected acts would perform for the clan and show off their skills. I had been asked by Mr Tall to find if Larten would like to perform with Madam Octa.**

 **I went back along the tunnel that led to my shared quarters because I assumed that Larten would be in there, I figured that he would have slept off his hangover by now and I wanted to ask him about performing. When I got to my shared quarters Larten wasn't in there, I wasn't one hundred percent certain where he was either. I didn't worry about it, I figured that Larten was having a wash under the waterfalls to refresh himself after getting drunk. I checked on the wolves before I made my way back to the halls. I didn't want to stay in my shared quarters because there was nothing to do in there.**

 **I saw some of the clan members shifting around the new benches and tables when I entered the hall, it was the hall where the Cirque Du Freak performers were planning to put on their special performance, I helped out where I could. I had some knowledge of how the Cirque Du Freak set up their shows, after all I had worked with them for quite a while before I travelled to the mountain.**

 **I went to where the trailers were parked and I fetched the big net curtains and the curtain rail that the curtains would be attached to, normally we used curtains to separate the stage from the dressing rooms. We didn't have dressing rooms or a big top in the mountain, instead we had to use two halls that were near to the performance location. I hung the curtains up where the entrances of the two halls were, some of the clan were taking their seats and I wasn't dressed for the show yet. We were a little bit behind schedule but I didn't panic, I asked Evra to walk through the area where the clan were seated and let them meet his snake. This was an ideal way of giving us extra time to prepare, it took some of the female performers a while to get their make-up and costumes on. I didn't take me long to get ready but then again I had vampiric speed on my side, I had to wear my sequined leotard because I was performing with Sive and Seersa first, after that I would be changing my costume and performing with Larten.**

 **I got myself dressed, put my eye make-up on and walked out onto our temporary stage, I timed it perfectly so that just as I walked onto the stage Evra had finished his act. I grabbed onto the rope that was dangling from the special hook which had been attached to the top of the hall and I started to climb up it. I climbed to the top and I started to swing on it, I hung upside down and performed a few acrobatic tricks. Sive and Seersa joined me and they commenced their contortion act, I joined in with their act because I was also very flexible. At one point I was hanging upside down holding onto Seersa's hands and she was being held upside down by her legs. We looked like a ladder of some kind, the finale of our act was the three of us swinging from the rope and then dismounting from it in a gymnastic style. The clan loved our opening two acts and some of them hadn't ever seen a gymnastic contortion act before either.**

 **I got myself changed quickly and put on my second costume, the costume which complimented what Larten wore when he performed with Madam Octa. A few of the clan members had seen Madam Octa but they had no idea about any of the tricks that she could perform. I changed my eye make-up too, I had been wearing silver glitter which matched my leotard but it wasn't appropriate for my second costume. Instead I changed the silver glitter for red glitter, black mascara and black eyeliner, in other words I was vamped up. I was wearing a red dress that had been cut short, it came up above my knees and it laced up at the back like a corset. I looked really sexy, I had lost my original costume in the fire that had destroyed our first big top so Larten had given me a new costume as a gift, it fitted me perfectly and it looked amazing.**

 **I hadn't worn my new costume very much and the clan hadn't seen it either. I walked out onto the stage holding Madam Octa's cage in one hand and one of the flutes in my other hand, some of the clan members in the audience didn't quite know what was coming next.**

 **"This next act can be quite dangerous, please do not make any noise or sudden movenments." I announced as a warning.**

 **I placed the cage on a wooden table that had been brought onto the stage and then I unlocked the door, I began to play a slow tune, Madam Octa crawled out of her cage and onto the table. I placed my arm slowly on the table and Madam Octa crawled up my arm, she scurried up my neck until she was on my head. I tilted my head back slightly and that is when Larten began to play the second flute, I stayed still whilst Madam Octa spun a web over my mouth, it was a strange sensation but I had practised it a few times so I was used to it and I knew what to do. When Madam Octa had finished spinning the web over my mouth she climbed back down my arm and then she climbed up Larten's body, I ate the web that was over my mouth and then I played my flute again. I stood away from Larten so that there was a gap between us and Madam Octa began to spin a new web that filled in the gap. Madam Octa spun a perfect web that linked Larten and myself together, it was quite big and when she was finished she sat in the middle of the web, it looked like she was waiting for a bug to come along. I played a slightly different tune on the flute and Madam Octa left the web, then she crawled back onto the table and did some tricks, she lifted up a few objects and she swung on a mini trapeze. Madam Octa's final trick was to eat a dinner with mini plates and glasses, it was so clever and it had taken a lot of my concentration to keep the mental link with Madam Octa for so long. Luckily Larten and I worked in perfect harmony with one another, we had practised the act so many times that whenever we performed it anybody who watched it was astounded.**

 **I played a short tune on my flute and that was Madam Octa's cue to return to her cage, she'd pull a rope and a little curtain would close as if she was going to bed. I locked the cage door and then I stood at the front of the stage with Larten, the clan clapped and we took our bows hand in hand before the next act came on to perform.**

 **The next act was Alexander Ribs who was a very thin contortionist, he could play tunes by hitting his ribs with drumsticks. He was quite entertaining. After Alexander Ribs had played a few tunes he showed off how flexible he really was, he could bend over backwards and his head almost touched the floor. Alexander Ribs could also touch his nose with his toes, don't ask me how he did it because I've got no idea!**

 **After Alexander Ribs was offstage we held a short interval so that everybody who needed to could get changed or have a snack. I had finished my two acts but I had to help Truska change into her costume as it had buttons at the back which I did up for her. I also helped Cormac Limbs to locate his bowtie which had disappeared, it was his lucky tie and he wouldn't perform without it.**

 **All of the performers had a ritual that they performed before they went onstage, some of them dished out high fives and some of them had one last look in the mirror to check that their make-up was perfect before they performed.**

 **Larten and I had a performance ritual, we'd drink a glass of blood each and I'd have a shot of vodka. I don't know why I chose this as my performance ritual it just seemed to fit with my personality, I had always been a little bit rebellious. Larten didn't approve of my insistance upon a shot of vodka but he never did anything to prevent it.**

 **After Truska had performed Rhamus Twobellies did a shorter version of his act, then Mr Tall performed some mind reading tricks and then that was the end of the show, or rather it was meant to be the end of the show but Hans Hands insisted upon performing so he did. After Hans Hands had lost a bar of gold (a vampire had beaten him in a race, he had promised a bar of gold to anybody who could beat him) he left the stage and then Alicia decided that she also wanted to perform. Alicia was telekenetic and she had been practising her skills, Alicia actually had a set routine that she could perform now and she had a costume too. Alicia looked just like all of the other performers when she had her make-up on and her hair had been styled, it was hard to tell that she was a human, however the vampires who were watching the show would have smelt her blood from a mile away.**

 **I liked Alicia's costume, she had gone for mystical purple and gold as a colour scheme. Alicia had a dress that almost touched the floor and gold jewellery, a head piece and matching gold eye make-up. I thought that Alicia looked like a sorceress but seeing as her act was moving objects without touching them it suited her. I hadn't seen her set routine before but I had seen her moving objects around in the air so I knew that she was very talented.**

 **I watched Alicia's act from the sidelines, I was very impressed with how much more powerful Alicia had become. I think that Mr Tall had helped her to train in some way because he also had mental abilities. I also believed that Mr Tall had helped Alicia to put together her routine, Alicia hadn't ever performed in public before she joined the Cirque Du Freak. Alicia had also managed to keep her telekenetic powers a secret, she thought that people would be afraid of her if she ever revealed her abilities to anybody.**

 **I enjoyed watching Alicia make a table float in the air, she even sat on a chair and then the chair lifted up into the air so that Alicia had her feet under the hovering table. I couldn't believe how well she had developed her powers until I saw it with my own two eyes.**

 **After Alicia had finished her act the Cirque Du Freak's highlights performance came to an end, the clan members who were watching the show applauded loudly because they had enjoyed watching us perform so much.**

 **I went to the hall that was serving as the women's dressing room so that I could get changed back into my normal clothing. I loved my costume but I couldn't wear it around the halls in case it got damaged or dirty. I put a long sleeved shirt on and some loose fitting trousers as they were comfortable, I liked to wear casual clothing whenever I could.**

 **I wrapped Larten's cloak around me as per usual and then I removed my stage make-up as I was wearing a lot of it and it didn't match my casual clothing either, it was too intense. I changed my make-up to match my outfit, I went for a very light fresh look that was natural. I didn't like to wear too much make-up because I did not believe that I needed it.**

 **Many of the vampiresses didn't wear any make-up at all because they came from an era before make-up was comercially available and they didn't see the point of it. The clan members would proudly display their battle scars as if they were medals, I covered up my facial scars but I left the rest undisguised, I was lucky that my scarring wasn't that bad.**

 **Larten had a lot of scarring, most of his had come from wounds that he'd gotten during battles with the vampaneze. I loved Larten regardless of the fact that his body was covered in scars of all shapes and sizes, he had long ones on his back that looked as if they had been made by nails or claws and on his chest Larten had very well defined muscles, the scars on Larten's chest had been caused by burns but they weren't that noticeable unless you looked closely.**

 **I helped to pack up the Cirque Du Freak's props and equipment, I was quite used to packing away everything at the end of a show as that had been one of my duties at the Cirque Du Freak. We'd pack everything away, get some sleep and then we'd move onto our next location. We never stayed in one place for more than a few days, living and working with the Cirque Du Freak was like being on a tour that had no set routes or destinations. We travelled to wherever Mr Tall wanted to go, he chose every location carefully and each show would be played in an abandoned cinema or an old theatre, one show was played in a former opera house that had half of its roof missing, regardless of where the shows were played the audience was always big and often the tickets would sell out quickly.**

 **When all of the Cirque Du Freak props and costumes had been stored and the curtains had been taken down the halls were back to normal, the Cirque Du Freak members made themselves at home as best as they could as the mountain was very different to what they were used to. Most of the Cirque Du Freak performers stayed in their vans and trailers after they had performed, our vampiric entertainment wasn't their cup of tea. Our entertainment usually revolved around duelling and wrestling matches, the Cirque Du Freak performers preferred to watch movies, most of their trailers had solar panels which provided them with limited electricity and hot water.**

 **I went to the Halls of Sport because that was where most of the entertainment took place, I loved watching duels between vampires and the wrestling matches were second to none. I cheered on my friends and I revelled in their victories. I wasn't sure what time of day or night it was but it didn't matter, the halls were a hive of activity all the time and that was because of my upcoming blessed mateship.**


	24. Chapter 23

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 23**

 **There wasn't long to go until my blessed mateship ceremony was due to take place, as time went on I got more and more apprehensive as to whether I was indeed making the right decision or not. I was feeling really guilty because of what had happened with Prince Arrow, I still hadn't told Larten because Prince Arrow had said that what had taken place in his quarters had to stay within his quarters.**

 **I didn't know what to do so I turned to Seba for guidance, I told Seba everything and I didn't leave out any details either.**

 **"I am disappointed in you, your conduct was almost inexcusable however because there is a Prince involved I can understand how awkward you feel. Prince Arrow should know better and so should you, it never should have happened but the past cannot be altered." Seba remarked, he sounded cross.**

 **"What am I going to do? I shouldn't go through with the ceremony until Larten knows the truth about these matters, I cannot deceive him after all. Oh Seba I'm in such a mess, I thought I'd turn to you for advice and guidance as you know Larten better than anyone else does." I replied.**

 **"You did the right thing by coming to me, I will sort this mess out for you but how I am going to do it I am not sure as of yet. I must speak with Larten but I will not tell anybody else about these events. I am sure that Larten will forgive you but I cannot speak for him." Seba reassured me.**

 **"I understand, I am truly sorry for my actions and I know what a difficult position I have put you in. I would be grateful for any help that you can give me Seba." I responded humbly.**

 **"I will do what I can to salvage your impending blessed mateship ceremony but nothing is guarenteed." Seba answered honestly.**

 **"I know, I won't say anything to Larten until you've spoken with him but I wouldn't blame Larten if he decides to call the whole thing off, he's within his rights to do that after all." I conceeded.**

 **"Yes, Larten is well within his rights to end his pledged mateship with you but I very much doubt that he will do that. The amount of effort that has gone into preparing for your ceremony is immense, there is not one clan member who has not had some role to play in this monumental event, if it gets called off then there will be a lot of problems and because it involves a Prince there would be a scandal and nobody wants that." Seba explained.**

 **"No, the last thing that the Princes need is a scandal involving one of their own. It would cause a lot of problems for the clan." I commented.**

 **"The clan would be in uproar if this information became public. Princes are not supposed to act like this, it is their job to set a good example to the clan. Prince Arrow has put all of us in a difficult position." Seba added.**

 **"What will happen to Prince Arrow?" I asked.**

 **"He will be called upon to explain his conduct but that is it, as you know technically Prince Arrow has done nothing wrong because he had consensual sex. The only thing in question is his lack of morals. A Prince cannot be executed either not that this error of judgement warrants such extreme punishment." Seba stated clearly.**

 **"What about me?" I asked nervously.**

 **"I am sure that Prince Arrow will take responsibility for the whole sorry affair, you will be looked upon more favourably than Prince Arrow will be." Seba clarified.**

 **"I hope so, I never intended any of these events to take place but like you said the past cannot be changed. I just have to learn from my mistakes and never repeat them." I acknowledged.**

 **"No, you must not repeat this indescretion. If you were to repeat this mistake then I cannot guarentee that Larten will forgive you, I am not even sure how he will react to this situation." Seba concluded.**

 **"I have absolutely no intentions of ever doing anything like this again, I have regretted it since the moment it took place. I wanted to say no but I felt like I couldn't really say no to a Vampire Prince, especially Prince Arrow." I explained to Seba.**

 **"I quite understand, that is why you will not be judged as harshly as Prince Arrow will be." Seba declared.**

 **"Do you think that this situation will be sorted out before the date of my blessed mateship ceremony comes around?" I asked.**

 **"I will attempt to get things resolved in time but I cannot promise anything, it is for Larten to decide upon the most appropriate course of action. I will speak with him but that is about all I can do." Seba concluded.**

 **"I understand, I'm going to go and watch the next wrestling match. I think that Gavnur was challenged and I want to cheer him on." I said.**

 **"I shall come and find you later and I will let you know what Larten says, he will not be pleased I can tell you that now." Seba reiterated.**

 **"I know, I feel so disgusted with myself for allowing this whole situation to arise in the first instance." I remarked.**

 **"It will be OK, go and watch the match now or** **y** **ou will miss it." Seba answered.**

 **"OK, I'll meet you later. I'll be in the Halls of Sport." I commented, Seba left and I went and sat down by the wrestling ring. The match between Gavnur and another General that I didn't know hadn't yet started so I waited for it to begin. I wanted Gavnur to win the match because I always supported my friends, I had no connection to the General that was Gavnur's opponent either.**

 **I saw Vanez Blaine entering the wrestling ring, he refereed all of the matches because he was the Games Master and refereeing matches was a part of his role. Vanez was also responsible for maintaining and repairing the equipment that was used in the Halls of Sport.**

 **The match got underway, it happened so fast that a human wouldn't have been able to follow the action but my super sharp vampiric eyesight enabled me to watch the match, I couldn't see it as well as a full vampire but I saw enough of the match to know that Gavnur had won the first round and the unknown General had won the second round, the third round was the deciding round that would determine the winner of the match.**

 **"Go on Gavnur, finish him." I cheered loudly, I could get quite excitable when it came to showing support for my friends. A lot of the other spectators were also shouting and getting quite animated, it wasn't just myself who was cheering for Gavnur either. I was on the edge of my seat because the match was so exciting, I'd never seen two vampires more determined to win than Gavnur and his opponent. It was a great match and eventually Vanez called it a draw because the third round had gone on for so long. Other vampires wrestled afterwards but their matches weren't nowhere near as entertaining, I got bored and decided to watch the duelling upon the Bars insted. The duelling vampires were both very good, eventually one of the duellists was knocked off the Bars and the other duellist was victorious. I had never learnt how to duel but I had it on my list of things that I wanted to master.**

 **All vampiresses learn how to duel, I'm not sure why this is though although I believed that it had something to do with Arra, I think that the vampiresses were taught how to duel in memory of her. Every year a Bars tournament was held and the prize was the Arra Sails Memorial Trophy.**

 **I made up my mind to learn how to duel after the blessed mateship ceremony, I had enough to sort out as it was let alone fitting in learning how to duel, I didn't want to turn up at my mateship ceremony battered and bruised either because that wouldn't have done me any favours. I had always known that I would learn to duel eventually, it was on my to do list. I had to find somebody who would be willing to teach me how to duel, that wouldn't be easy because the only person who taught duelling to any kind of standard was Larten's former blessed mate. We were civil to each other but we didn't really get on for obvious reasons.**

 **I was in my quarters, I was polishing my ornamental weapons when there was a knock on the door. I got up to answer it, it was Larten and Seba so I let them in. I sat down after I had hung the ornamental weapons back up, I'd finish polishing them later on but right now I had more pressing matters to attend to.**

 **Larten and Seba sat down and the three of us sat there in silence, it was as though nobody wanted to be the first to speak but eventually I broke the awkward silence.**

 **"Larten can you please forgive my indescretions? I was in a difficult position." I humbly asked.**

 **"I have discussed the matter at length with Seba, he spoke up for you and he is very much in your corner. I was shocked when I found out about this whole situation but you are not to blame, Prince Arrow should indeed know better than to proposition a vampiress who is pledged with intent." Larten remarked.**

 **"Are you still willing to go through with the ceremony?" I enquired.**

 **"Yes, I am still willing to go through with the ceremony. I am not sure how to deal with Prince Arrow, his conduct was less than appropriate. The worst thing about it is that Prince Arrow will be conducting a part of our ceremony, I am not sure how to deal with him because he is a Prince. I do believe that Prince Arrow should be repremanded for his conduct but who would have the guts to challenge him over his recent behaviour?" Larten said questioningly to both of us.**

 **"Prince Paris could do something, he is the oldest and most respected out of the Princes. Maybe Prince Paris should be the one to repremand Prince Arrow." Seba suggested.**

 **"I agree, Prince Paris is the only one that Prince Arrow would listen to. If Prince Paris were to pass a judgement upon Prince Arrow in relation to this situation then he would have to respect that judgement." I added.**

 **"Our next move will be to inform Prince Paris of what has taken place, he will then be able to make a decision as to how Prince Arrow is to be repremanded." Seba concluded.**

 **"I concur, that is the best course of action." Larten agreed.**

 **"I will leave you to sort it out Seba, you are good at dealing with situations like this one." I acknowledged.**

 **"I have been solving problems in the mountain for a very long time, I am not just here to assign quarters and give out supplies, I provide advice and I try to keep everybody here living harmoniously with one another. I have got Larten out of more trouble and difficult situations then I can count. You were notorious in your youth Larten, at least now you have changed your ways." Seba remarked.**

 **"I think that Arra was one of the main reasons why Larten changed his ways." I responded.**

 **"Yes, Arra helped me a lot. She would not agree to become my mate unless I changed. As you know I used to be very promiscuous, Arra hated that about me so I learnt to control myself." Larten replied.**

 **"I had better go and see the Princes, the sooner we get this sorted out the better it will be for all concerned." Seba concluded.**

 **"I agree, are you going too Larten?" I asked.**

 **"No, Seba can deal with this alone. I want to stay in here with you." Larten admitted.**

 **"OK, but remember what we have agreed to." I reminded Larten, Seba had left and we were alone in my quarters.**

 **"I will stick to our agreement." Larten confirmed.**

 **"It is hard for both of us but the wait will be worth it." I stated.**

 **"I cannot wait any longer, I think that we are even because both of us have made indescretions so what is the point in waiting?" Larten asked.**

 **"You've made an indescretion?" I queried, shocked at this new revelation.**

 **"Yes, when I went out with Gavnur and the Princes I got very drunk. As a result of me being very drunk I took some random vampiress back to her quarters, I think that one thing led to another because I woke up in her coffin. I cannot even remember if we mated or not, however judging by the circumstances I think that we probably did have sex." Larten admitted to me.**

 **"So that is why I couldn't find you when I left the Prince's Dome, nobody knew where you were either. I eventually found you in the Halls of Sport and you were hungover." I recalled.**

 **"I was asleep in that vampiress's quarters, I remember waking up next to her, neither of us had any clothing on but what happened before that is a complete blur." Larten conceeded.**

 **"Oh well, at least you are honest. The past is the past, you cannot alter what has already taken place, you can only learn from it and move on." I acknowledged.**

 **"I agree with you, I can only apologise for my poor judgement calls. I should not have consumed alcohol to the point where I was unable to control myself, not that being drunk is an acceptable excuse for my lapse in judgement." Larten pointed out.**

 **"It is alright, we've both made mistakes. As long as nothing happens after the ceremony we can put this whole messy situation behind us." I stated.**

 **"I agree, after the ceremony we will be united as one and the clan will have to keep their distance from you. Once a couple has entered into a blessed mateship their agreement can only be dissolved by the Princes." Larten clarified.**

 **"This whole situation feels like some kind of wonderful dream, a dream that I hope never to wake up from." I said happily.**

 **"This is no dream, this is the real deal. You are awake and everything you see is real." Larten confirmed.**

 **"I know that Larten, I am just so lucky to have a guy like you by my side, I know that you're not going to leave me." I acknowledged.**

 **"If I had any doubts then there is no way that I would have asked you to become my blessed mate, it is not a decision to be taken lightly." Larten remarked.**

 **"I know that, I wouldn't want to spend the rest of my life with just anybody. I cannot picture my life without you in it, without you by my side it feels like a part of me is missing. You're my reason for breathing." I admitted.**

 **"I am your reason for breathing? How did you survive before we met?" Larten asked me.**

 **"Before we met I was not really alive, I was like an empty shell but when you came along you gave me a key to a whole new world. I am no longer empty because your love has filled up the blank space that I had in my heart." I replied sweetly.**

 **"I am not used to having ladies declare their affection for me like you have just done, I am not very good at expressing my love for you in words." Larten concluded.**

 **"You do not have to declare your love for me because I know how you feel, if you did not love me then you would not have made me your pledged mate with intent." I added.**

 **"I would not have mated with you or accepted your pledge if I did not want you, I am not the type to lead women on, especially humans because they get attached too easily. After the disaster I had with my previous two human mates that I blooded I decided not to take another human mate, however when I met you I had a change of heart. You looked so beautiful and pure that I thought of nothing else but making you mine. Originally I had thought of trying to save my prior blessed mateship but I could not trust her, even when we were in the same place she would flirt with other clan members infront of me. It was embarrasing, the clan would not stop gossiping about it either." Larten revealed.**

 **"I remember the night that I made my original pledge to you, we were in your trailer at the Cirque Du Freak. I was really nervous. I thought that you would reject me because I didn't think that I was good enough for you. I knew that you had saved my life which you didn't have to do, I thought that you thought of me as only your assistant and nothing more. When we kissed for the first time it made my head spin, I wanted you so badly to put your hands on my skin and make me experience pleasures that are not of this world, when you actually did those things to me it was beyond anything that I've ever experienced." I acknowledged.**

 **"I do my best to satisfy the woman that I am with, if she is getting everything that she needs from me then she has no need to look elsewhere. I always do my utmost to ensure that my mate is happy, whatever she wants she can have as far as I am concerned." Larten reassured me.**

 **"Luckily for you I am not that demanding, I ask for very little if anything." I responded.**

 **"I had noticed that about you, some of my former mates expected me to shower them with gifts, others expected me to stick by their side and I got no time to myself at all. At least you are not demanding or obsessive, you are not clingy or too over the top with your declarations of love for me." Larten complimented me.**

 **"I do not need to be possessive or obsessive because I know that you are my pledged mate with intent, that fact won't change until after we've said our vows." I answered.**

 **"You are correct, it is not long before we take our vows and then I will finally get to see you in your dress." Larten commented.**

 **"I have tried it on, I look stunning according to the two vampiresses who are going to be helping me get ready for the ceremony." I remarked.**

 **"I have no doubt that your dress is fit for a queen, it was expensive to make but I will not see you dressed in anything that is not good enough for you." Larten told me.**

 **"You are very kind, your bounty is endless and I feel so privileged that I am in this position." I remarked.**

 **"I always ensure that my mates want for nothing, I have tried saying no in the past but then we would end up arguing and then it made me feel bad." Larten replied.**

 **"I don't ask you for anything so you have no need to worry about me." I stated.**

 **"The only things you have ever asked me for are reasonable, you have never demanded anything from me. I love it when we mate and I take you to the point where you are pleading with me to give you more." Larten explained.**

 **"I cannot help it, I just love what you do to my body and the sensations I get are incredible, the way you make me orgasm multiple times in a row is one of the things that I enjoy most about being your pledged mate. No-one else whether they were human or vampire has ever made me feel the way that you do, no-one else has the skills that you have got either." I confirmed.**

 **"I have learnt over time exactly what women like and what they do not like, every woman whether she is a human or a vampiress is different, with humans I always take care not to hurt them, I am even more careful with those who are still pure because it hurts them so I do my utmost to be gentle, I want to cause them pleasure not pain." Larten informed me.**

 **"Of course you won't be mating with anyone other than me from now on will you?" I asked seriously.**

 **"I will not stray from you, however in certain circumstances like those which I have explained to you before I may have to help young vampiresses who are still pure to lose their purity. I know what I am doing and I can make it a good experience for them because it is not very pleasant." Larten remarked.**

 **"I remember when I lost my virginity, I hated it and it took me a long time to recover from it afterwards. It was more painful than when you blooded me and that is saying something." I confessed.**

 **"At least now you experience nothing but pleasure." Larten said.**

 **"You have never hurt me, even in the beginning when we first had sex it didn't hurt me. I think that is because you were able to make me orgasm within a few minutes of us having sex, the kissing and the fact that you licked me out first also helped me to orgasm." I revealed.**

 **"I wanted to hear you scream and I achieved that aim, I love it when I have got a woman to the point where she is begging me not to stop and she keeps saying my name, it just proves that I am highly skilled when it comes to sex." Larten said arrogantly.**

 **"I have never doubted your skills for one moment." I responded.**

 **"You have no reason to doubt me, I know how to take care of my mate. My priority is making sure that you are always well looked after and protected." Larten reiterated.**

 **"You're doing a great job, I have no complaints whatsoever. I also know how much we love each other, like I said earlier you are my reason for breathing." I repeated.**

 **"I have never known anybody to be as deeply in love with me as you are, the bond we have is unbreakable." Larten confirmed.**

 **"I agree with you, we've had our moments but we have always managed to make up again. As I understand it you and your former mate didn't get along very well when you said no to her. As for me and you I have already given my thanks to Seba, without his advice and input we may not have reconciled with one another." I admitted.**

 **"Seba did speak very highly of you, he always has done and he thinks that you are a perfect mate for me too." Larten told me.**

 **"I'm glad to hear it, as for Gavnur he can be a little bit annoying at times but he's a fine General, a great warrior and his heart is in the right place. Gavnur is an all round good guy in my opinion." I added.**

 **"I found Gavnur when he was a baby and I saved his life, I raised him and now we have become like brothers." Larten revealed.**

 **"Really? That is something which I never knew about Gavnur, no wonder you two are such good friends." I replied.**

 **"We have faught in many battles together and we have killed many enemies between us, we even shared a mate or two and a few barrels of ale in our misguided youth." Larten remarked.**

 **"I can just imagine you two sharing a mate and both of you trying to impress the vampiress in question, I bet that both of you made her scream your names out loud." I assumed.**

 **"That vampiress only screamed for me, Gavnur could never quite get her to that point but he did his best to satisfy her." Larten said openly.**

 **"Gavnur made me moan loudly but he didn't make me scream, only you have ever done that to me. Prince Arrow made me cry out for more and he obliged, they are not bad lovers but they aren't anywhere near as good as you are." I responded.**

 **"I am the best that the mountain has to offer and I am all yours." Larten concluded.**

 **"I am happy that you are all mine, I hate seeing you in the arms of anyone other than myself." I acknowledged.**

 **"You will never see me with another vampiress unless I am called upon to help her lose her purity, I usually do it over several evenings because then it gives her body time to adjust and recover." Larten said honestly.**

 **"I don't mind you doing this, it is like a service that you provide and I know about it so it isn't as though you are going behind my back." I commented.**

 **"I am honest, if I have to do something like this then I will always inform you of it first. It does not happen very often but every once in a while a new vampiress will join our clan and she will still have her purity intact." Larten stated.**

 **"I thought that if she had a male mentor then he would be the one to break her in." I queried.**

 **"Normally that is what occurs but certain mentors like their assistants to be broken in by myself because I have the skills that they do not possess." Larten concluded.**

 **"You are highly skilled in a lot of ways, you have taught me so many things and because of you I am able to look after myself." I replied.**

 **"You are independant but as your pledged mate I have a duty to make sure that no harm comes to you." Larten clarified.**

 **"I know that because you have told me this on previous occasions." I recalled.**

 **"I have been in here for a long time, we have also discussed many things but now I need to find Seba. I need to find out what repremand Prince Arrow will be getting for his bad conduct." Larten concluded.**

 **"I understand, I am curious to find out about Prince Arrow's repremand too. Did I tell you that he assigned guards to me? Whenever I am not with you two guards have been instructed to stick by my side, apparently some of the clan members were talking about me behind my back so Prince Arrow dealt with it." I informed Larten.**

 **"I was aware that you had guards but I was not sure if you had asked for them or what the situation was. If they make you feel safe when I am not around then by all means keep them, if they were specifically assigned to you then they will not work for any other clan member but you." Larten explained.**

 **"I am happy to have them around, I like having guards because it makes me look like I am important or something." I replied honestly.**

 **"You are a non ranked vampiress, if you were not my pledged mate then you would only be thought of as my assistant and that is it." Larten claimed.**

 **"If this were the case then you would ultimately have the final say in any decision regarding me, is that how it works?" I asked.**

 **"I would be responsible for your care and you would be looked upon as little more than my servant, that is how it works here. You would not get much say in anything unless I were feeling generous, you would be kept busy all the time and if you wished to mate then I would have to give my permission, luckily you are not in this position." Larten concluded.**

 **"Man that sounds like a pretty raw deal, why do vampiresses get treated so poorly?" I asked.**

 **"Their mentors treat them well but if their mentor has poor standing then the clan do not look upon them kindly, it is all to do with rank and proving yourself to the clan. The more fights you win and battles you take part in the higher your standing, if you become a General or if you pass the Trials then you also earn good standing, if you mate with a Prince then that also gives you high standing. It is complicated." Larten explained.**

 **"I understand, I am not worried about it because I have got you and you will make sure that I am well looked after." I commented.**

 **"I will not let anything bad happen to you, we must go now and find Seba." Larten remarked.**

 **"Very well, let's go." I nodded in agreement and off we went to find Seba.**


	25. Chapter 24

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 24**

 **Larten and I went to find Seba, we headed down to the main hall where the majority of the clan were, we found Seba straight away because his red robes stood out like a sore thumb amongst the sea of black cloaks.**

 **"What was the outcome of your discussion with Prince Paris?" I asked Seba eagerly.**

 **"I have spoken with Prince Paris, he was shocked when I reported to him what has taken place. Prince Paris has agreed to repremand Prince Arrow verbally and to make him publicly apologise for his misconduct." Seba informed me.**

 **"That is probably the best outcome, however I don't want the rest of the clan knowing about my indescretions. A public apology isn't really necessary given the circumstances." I replied.**

 **"Very well, I shall go back to the Prince's Dome and explain all of this to Prince Paris." Seba remarked.**

 **"Thank you for sorting this out Seba, I do appreciate it." I stated humbly.**

 **"You have nothing to fret about, I will fix this for you just as I have fixed so many other problems." Seba reassured me before he walked off in the direction of the Prince's Dome.**

 **Larten and I walked over to one of the long tables, I was hungry and so too was Larten. I grabbed a bowl of stew and some bread, I'm not exactly sure which meat was used to make the stew but it tasted good. I ate everything apart from the solitary bone that was found at the bottom of the bowl, Larten had helped himself to a rack of lamb and a jug of ale which he gobbled down quickly. After we had eaten Larten took my hand and he led me away from the table that we were sitting at.**

 **Larten held me close to him and it felt wonderful to feel his warmth again. I hadn't felt Larten's warmth in a while and it had been a long time since we had kissed each other, I had missed it so much. When Larten kissed me publicly it took me by surprise, I hadn't been expecting it but my instincts kicked in and I kissed Larten back passionately. I didn't care who saw us kissing, after all we were pledged to one another with intent. I was just happy that Larten had been spontanious for once in his life and my ring was glistening in the torchlight. It sparkled like a star and I believed that it was one of the most beautiful rings I'd ever seen.**

 **We kissed for a long time, however we did not stay in the Halls kissing for long because it wasn't appropriate so Larten took me to his quarters and we kissed in there for ages. We had agreed not to mate again until after our ceremony, I still went all out though and I moaned softly because I wanted to do more than kiss Larten. I knew that my moans turned Larten on, I wanted to mate with him so badly because we hadn't mated in so long and we needed to reaffirm our bond. We had agreed not to mate again until after our ceremony but I knew that neither of us could wait that long.**

 **I pulled the cord that held Larten's cloak in place and it dropped to the floor, thereby giving me access to his shirt buttons which I unbuttoned one at a time. I wanted to touch Larten's well toned chest, I was hoping that Larten would make me scream like never before.**

 **Larten continued to kiss me and at the same time he loosened the laces on my dress, I stepped out of it and then Larten clicked his fingers which caused my bra to drop to the floor. I was almost naked, I only had my pants on and Larten was wearing his trousers which he removed in an instant.**

 **We walked over to the waiting coffin and we got into it, I lay down and Larten joined me. We kissed deeply before Larten entered me and he didn't hold back, this was his way of finally being able to satisfy our insatiable lust for one another, we swapped positions and I went on top, I liked the control it gave me. This was fucking vampire style, this was purely about lust and pleasure, love didn't come into it. It wasn't long before Larten had me begging him to give me more, he obliged by thrusting into me even deeper and harder which sent me into overdrive and when I orgasmed it was like having a tidal wave of sensations hit me and I just had to go with it. I'd never had it this good, all of the pent-up sexual frustration that we felt was being released because it had been bottled up inside us for too long.**

 **We finished each other off and then we both lay back in the coffin, we were both panting slightly and I was trying to regain control of my breathing. For a vampire to get out of breath is a rare thing because we have such high levels of stamina, we were both out of breath so that just goes to show how intense our session had been. I felt so much better after our session, I hadn't been left wanting either because Larten had made me orgasm so intensely.**

 **"That was just what my body had been craving for so long. I feel satisfied and now I can relax because I am not gagging for it like I was earlier." I said.**

 **"I feel the same way, I could tell that you wanted it really badly. I always know when a woman wants me, you send out signals that you are not even aware of and I can pick up on them." Larten revealed.**

 **"I have never been so horny, it is probably because we haven't done anything for so long. Normally we mate all the time so we satisfy our cravings before they get to that level, that is probably the longest that I've ever gone without having sex. I never want to wait that long again either." I remarked.**

 **"Trust me, you will not have to wait that long again. For me it was torture, looking at you and not being to touch you drove me insane. I had a hard time controlling myself but when I picked up on your signals I could not hold back any longer, are you satisfied now?" Larten asked me.**

 **"Yes Larten, you did a great job. You gave me a very powerful orgasm, it was more powerful than usual." I admitted.**

 **"I am pleased that I was able to satisfy you, it felt good for me also. I could not have held back much longer if I am being honest with you." Larten acknowledged.**

 **"I know, I could feel how badly you wanted me. When we were kissing it was far deeper and more intense than it normally is, it made me want to have sex with you then and there." I stated honestly.**

 **"I am happy that I was able to feed your carnal appetite, sometimes you just need to let the preditor within come out to play." Larten commented.**

 **"I agree, I didn't know that the preditor in me was so animalistic. I've never given into my carnal hunger like that before, normally I am very much in control of myself as you know. We truly are creatures of the night because no human would ever act like that. By the way I could do with a feed, I haven't fed for a couple of nights." I said.**

 **"I fed earlier on tonight, whenever I feed it gives me an extra energy boost which I need in order to keep you satisfied." Larten explained.**

 **"I could feel your energy, you were wild but that's how I like it. I love it when you make me scream, when I orgasm it feels like I've entered the realms of paradise. You take me to a place that is beyond description." I told Larten.**

 **"I told you when we first met that I would do things to your body that would send you into paradise, I have managed to do that many times and when you scream and beg me for more it tells me that you love what I do to you." Larten stated.**

 **"Oh believe me darling I only scream for you, I never had anybody make me scream until you came along. I absolutely love what you do to my body, I've never had it so good. Even the other vampires I've slept with cannot compare to you." I responded.**

 **"When the ceremony has taken place I will mate with you in a different way, it will be more an expression of my love for you rather than satisfying our carnal desires. I will still make you scream though, that is guarenteed." Larten assured me.**

 **"I am looking forward to our ceremony, I really want to have your last name as my own my darling. It will be such an honour to carry your last name." I replied.**

 **"If that is what you want then that is fine with me, you may take my last name as your own. I think that we have discussed this matter before." Larten recalled.**

 **"I believe we have but we talk about so many things I cannot possibly remember everything that we've discussed." I admitted.**

 **"That is a good point, are we going to go down to the halls and feed? There is plenty of fresh blood available, the mountain has its own supply thanks to some generous donors." Larten revealed.**

 **"I have learnt all about the Guardians of the Blood, Vanez informed me of their role here in the mountain." I answered.**

 **"That is good, I had meant to teach you more about our customs. I have been so busy with preparations for our blessed mateship that I have not had time to give you any lessons." Larten explained.**

 **"I understand, it takes a lot of time to prepare for an occasion such as a blessed mateship. I wanted to ask you something, it is about Arra. I wondered if maybe you would like to hold a small memorial service for her, soon it will be twelve years to the night since she passed from this world and into Vampire Paradise. I thought that maybe you would like to remember her in some way, I know how much she meant to you." I acknowledged.**

 **"I had not forgotten this fact but I have been so busy preparing for our ceremony that I have not had the time to organise any sort of service for her. I do not believe that Arra would want any fuss, she was not into pomp and ceremony at all. I may however lay a wreath or something but I will do it in private. I do not want to show my emotions in public, I am sure you understand this." Larten said in reply to my suggestion.**

 **"I understand perfectly." I answered.**

 **"Good, I am going to get dressed and then I shall lace up your dress before going down to the halls to feed." Larten concluded, I stood up and Larten swiftly helped me to get myself dressed before he dressed himself, with vampiric speed it took only a few seconds for us to both get dressed and make ourselves look presentable again.**

 **We walked back to the halls and helped ourselves to some mugs of fresh blood, I sat down at one of the tables and Larten joined me. He sat opposite me so that we could talk, the table we chose to sit at had quite a few other vampires sitting around it too so there wasn't much space. I sat between two vampires that I had never met before, Larten sat next to Gavnur and another unknown vampiress. She looked like a newly blooded clan member, we always needed more women to join us as there simply weren't enough to go around. A lot of the vampires wanted to mate but there currently weren't any single vampiresses so they had to go out, find a human woman, blood her and then mate with her. Most women would run a mile if some some stranger who claimed to be a vampire randomly approached them. It wasn't an easy thing to do but a few vampires had managed it so now we had a few new vampiresses in the mountain.**

 **I finished my mug of blood and went to refill it, Larten was chatting with the unknown vampiress. When I returned to the table Larten was having a full on conversation with this new vampiress, I chatted to Gavnur for a while because we hadn't seen each other in a while.**

 **"Larten are you going to introduce me to this young lady?" I asked.**

 **"Of course, this is Karon and she has only recently joined us. She is an assistant to Olaf, Olaf is one of the Guards, he guards the main entrance to the tunnels." Larten informed me.**

 **"Hi Karon, I am Larten's pledged mate. We are pledged with intent. Welcome to Vampire Mountain, I hope that you'll enjoy your stay with us. It isn't so bad once you adapt but in the beginning it is a big change to the human life you've sacrificed." I stated.**

 **"It is a major change, I was working in a bar when I met Olaf. I didn't believe him at first but he brought me here to prove to me that this place exists. Olaf had no choice but to blood me because humans don't last long out here. The extreme weather conditions and wild animals make it almost impossible for humans to survive in this area, I am half blooded at the moment but I'll be fully blooded soon. I don't mind it here, I swore I saw a wolf earlier but maybe I was mistaken." Karon explained.**

 **"We have wolves here, I have two pet wolves and they have eight babies, they are growing rapidly. That reminds me, I need to go and feed them and then they need to be exercised. The pups are big enough to go outside now so they can all have a run around, it'll do them good to get some fresh air. Are you coming Larten?" I asked.**

 **"Yes, I will help you. Wolves can be a handful." Larten remarked as he stood up from the table.**

 **"Bye Karon, I'll catch up with you another time." I said.**

 **"Bye, it was nice to meet you both." Karon replied just before we left to go and feed Sasha, Shadow and the babies who weren't really babies any longer. The babies were about ten weeks old now, they were eating solid food and starting to learn how to howl. They all looked like cute fluffy dogs but they were wild like their parents. I took the pack outside and fed them a whole stag, that would fill them up for a day or two at least. After the wolves had finished eating they all went off into the woodland that surrounded the mountain. I knew they'd come back when I called them so I didn't need to worry.**

 **I stood outside and looked up at the night sky, it was cloudy tonight but it wasn't too cold outside. I decided to walk around, my muscles were hurting because of Larten so I tried to walk off the pain. That was the only downside to having vigerous sex was the sore muscles that you got afterwards. Even vampires get sore muscles, ours heal quicker than human muscles do though.**

 **I stretched and jogged around the perimeter of the woodland a couple of times, it wouldn't tire me out but it would get my blood flowing quicker so that even in my sleeveless dress I'd stay warm. It wasn't cold outside but standing still for a prolonged period of time would make anybody cold.**

 **Larten jogged with me because we liked to challenge each other, it was fun to test out my vampiric speed and there was plenty of space outside too.**

 **I liked to climb trees and hang off branches, I walked along some narrow branches to test out my balance. If I couldn't balance on a tree branch then how could I be expected to balance on the wooden planks that made up the Bars? When I was feeling brave enough I'd climb up to the very top of the tree and jump down, it gave me a big adrenaline rush. Larten would leap up into the air and catch me in his arms, he never failed to time his jump perfectly either. One moment I'd be falling through the air, the next I'd be back at the bottom of the tree unharmed and ready to jump again.**

 **I loved seeing the slight panic in Larten's eyes when he realised that his pledged mate was a daredevil and self confessed adrenaline junkie.**

 **"I wish you would not climb so high up those trees, what if you lost your grip?" Larten asked me seriously.**

 **"If I lose my grip then you can catch me, my nails are pretty long so I can drive them right into the tree trunk. I am not likely to slip, my balance and grip are both superb." I replied reassuringly.**

 **"Be that as it may I would rather that you did not act like a fool. I do not want you to be hurt, you have been in a few precarious positions and the last thing you need is to be injured right before our ceremony." Larten pointed out.**

 **"That is a good point, I will be careful and I won't take any needless risks." I answered.**

 **"We should go back to the mountain now, the sun will be rising soon. The nights are getting shorter now that Summer is on its way." Larten reminded me.**

 **"I hadn't forgotten about that, the snow makes it seem like it is still Winter but it isn't." I remarked.**

 **"You had better call your wolves, they could be anywhere by now." Larten said.**

 **"Sasha, Shadow come." I called out loudly, if my wolves were anywhere nearby then they'd hear my call and come running.**

 **"Sasha where are you?" I said under my breath, I was a bit worried.**

 **"Larten could you howl? The sound of howling will travel further than my calls do." I asked.**

 **Larten howled, it did sound very much like a wolf's howl too. I knew that if my wolves heard another familiar howl then they'd answer it. It was how wolves located their packs in the wild if they got separated.**

 **I listened carefully, I was hoping to hear Sasha howling in reply. I couldn't hear anything at first even with my very acute ears, I stood absolutely still and tuned into the woodland around me. I shut my eyes and waited, the wind was blowing and that would carry the sound further. Larten did a longer howl, I hoped that this second howl would be heard clearly by any wolf that was in the vacinity.**

 **A few minutes later a wolf appeared but I didn't recognise it. It snarled at me viscously, I held my hand out so that it could smell me. Once the wolf smelt me it calmed right down and became like a regular dog, the wolf trotted off and then it came back to us, then it trotted off again and once again it came back to us.**

 **"I think the wolf wants us to follow it Larten." I said.**

 **"I agree, maybe it is trying to tell us something." Larten confirmed.**

 **We didn't hesitate to follow this wolf to where it was leading us, it moved with speed but we kept up easily. We followed the wolf and then we saw what the problem was, my wolves were in a sticky situation and it was little wonder why they hadn't come to me when I called them. The wolf pups were in a bad way, some were bleeding and one of them was severely injured. Sasha and Shadow were growling and snarling at the biggest mountain lion I'd ever seen in my entire life, they couldn't fend it off by themselves and that is when I realised that there were two cats. One of them was in a tree with blood on its mouth and the other one was trying to get to the pups but the wolves were defending them.**

 **I stood back for a moment and I tried to figure out what to do, that was when I made the decision to charge forward and lead the pups to safety. I didn't even hesitate to run to the pups, they were bleeding and they needed help.**

 **Larten was already standing by the three adult wolves and he was doing his best to fend off the mountain lion, the other cat was still in the tree and therefore it wasn't a threat but I kept my eye on it.**

 **I went to where the pups were huddled together, I tried to examine them as best as I could, one pup had some deep gashes and it was bleeding. I wrapped it in my coat and I kept pressure on the wound, the others had superficial injuries. When Larten had eventually killed the mountain lion he rushed over to me and he assisted me by carrying the badly injured pup, the others were able to walk. The three adult wolves carried a pup each and we headed back to the mountain. I didn't know if the badly injured pup was going to survive or not.**

 **We went directly to the medical wing, there were supplies in the medical wing that I needed to get to if the badly injured pup was going to have any chance of survival.**

 **"Grab those bandages and keep pressure on that wound, it has to be cleaned out and stitched up or this pup will bleed to death." I said urgently to the Medic on duty.**

 **"We are not vets!" the Medic replied but he did what I told him to do.**

 **"Larten, check the other pups over. I'll tend to the badly injured one." I instructed with some panic in my voice.**

 **"Calm down, you cannot focus on the task in hand if you are panicking." Larten replied as he checked the pups over, most were just scratched and a couple had bite wounds which Larten cleaned and patched up with healing herbs. The badly injured pup was clearly in a lot of pain, the Medic was doing his best to keep pressure on the wound whilst I grabbed a jug of warm water to clean it out, I had to stitch it up too because it was deep. Healing herbs could only do so much, the wolf pup had been knocked out with the special gas that fully blooded vampires can breathe out. I wasn't sure if the wolf pup would survive or not but I was going to do my best to save its life.**

 **I was going to stitch the wound up myself but Larten did it instead because he was better at it than I was. I couldn't understand where these mountain lions were coming from and why they were attacking fearlessly, they hadn't just taken one pup, eaten it and then gone after bigger prey, they'd attacked all of the pups, badly injured one and then we had come along. Larten had killed both of the mountain lions.**

 **This was a very bizarre thing, mountain lions do not attack unless they are being attacked. When they kill to eat they stalk their prey, catch it and crush its windpipe before eating it and they normally hunt deer, not wolf pups. I couldn't work it out.**

 **Larten finished stitching the badly injured pup's wound but it was touch and go, the pup was still alive which was something. The other pups were going to be alright as far as I knew, Larten had done a good job patching them up, Sasha and Shadow were unharmed but they seemed to be a bit stressed out, they were pacing a lot. The other wolf had already disappeared back to the woodland where it lived.**

 **I carried two of the pups back to the quarters that had become their den, the others could walk apart from the badly injured pup who had to stay in the medical wing for observation. The Medic wasn't happy about it but he had a duty of care to heal the sick and injured whether they were in the clan or not. I was really worried about the pup but I knew that he was in good hands and we'd done all we could for him.**

 **I stayed with the injured pup after I had taken the others along the corridor and back to their temporary den. I stroked the injured pup, he was still sleepy but slowly he started to wake up and whine a little bit. I held him close to my chest and because he felt a bit cold I wrapped him in a blanket, my coat was covered in wolf blood so it needed to be washed.**

 **"This whole thing is my fault, I shouldn't have let the wolves out of my sight." I said to Larten.**

 **"You are not to blame, how could you have known that there were two mountain lions in the area?" Larten asked me.**

 **"I still feel responsible, where are these big cats coming from?" I asked Larten.**

 **"I do not know, in future we will have to be careful and the Princes should be informed. I have already killed three of these cats, I hate to kill but I had no choice. My main concern is the wolf pup, if he survives the next forty eight hours then he has a good chance of recovery. There is nothing more I can do, I have given this pup the best chance of survival. Now it is a waiting game." Larten replied.**

 **"I understand Larten, thank you for your help." I said automatically, I was still holding the wolf pup against my chest as if it were a human baby. I knew that I would never have a child of my own so the wolf pups were the closest thing I had. I loved them all and I had named some of them too.**

 **"It is getting late, the sun rose over two hours ago so I am going to my coffin. I advise you to go and get some rest, the wolf pup will be alright here, the Medic will keep an eye on him for you." Larten suggested.**

 **"You're right as usual." I stated as I handed the wolf pup over to the Medic.**

 **"I will see you tonight my love." Larten said to me before he hugged me.**

 **"Please look after my little hairball, I'll come and check on him later." I instructed the Medic.**

 **"Don't worry, I'll watch over your little hairy friend for you. It isn't like I have anything better to do." the Medic replied reassuringly.**

 **"Thanks, I appreciate it." I replied, then I left the medical wing and went to get some rest. I was exhausted.**

 **When I woke up the very first thing I did was visit the medical wing to see if the wolf pup was alright or not. To my relief when I entered the medical wing the wolf pup was on the floor drinking which was a good sign, the Medic was watching the wolf pup closely whilst it drank.**

 **"How is my little hairball?" I asked.**

 **"Your little hairball is doing OK, he needs to wear a collar so that he doesn't rip the stitches out. The wound needs to heal but I think we got to him in time." the Medic replied.**

 **"I'm glad to hear it, I was very worried about him. I still haven't named him though, he has always been called my little hairball." I remarked.**

 **"I'm sure that a name will come to you, what are the other wolves called?" the Medic asked.**

 **"The parents are Sasha and Shadow, two of the female pups are called Starr and Saphira, the males so far are Loki, Thor and Titan, the others don't have names yet." I answered.**

 **"OK, this pup needs a name. I'd call him Logan or Luka if it were my wolf." the Medic suggested.**

 **"I think Logan sounds too much like Loki, Luka is better. Luka will do very nicely I think." I acknowledged.**

 **"So your little hairball is now named Luka, that is sorted. Now for the others are they boys or girls?" the Medic asked me.**

 **"I have eight pups in total, I have named six of them and now I have one girl and one boy left to name." I explained.**

 **"OK, have you thought about names such as Bandit?" the Medic asked me.**

 **"No, but Bandit is a great name for a wolf pup. I'll keep it, that just leaves the one remaining girl to name now." I replied.**

 **"OK, let me think for a moment. How about Delta? It sounds good alongside Bandit." the Medic said.**

 **"So I have got Bandit and Delta, Starr and Saphira, Sasha and Shadow, Loki and Thor and Luka and Titan. That'll do, they seem to match up pretty well." I concluded.**

 **"Yes, I agree. All of your wolves have been named now, all you have to do is give them collars with their names on so you can tell them apart." the Medic added.**

 **"Good idea, I need to sort that out." I responded.**

 **"You should inform the Princes, I know that they want two of your wolves to act as guards within the Prince's Dome." the Medic stated.**

 **"How do you know?" I asked.**

 **"Prince Vancha told me about it when he was in here, he had a nasty gash on his eye from a fight so I fixed it for him." the Medic revealed.**

 **"OK, I'll go and inform the Princes. I have to speak with them anyway. Take care of Luka for me please." I commented.**

 **"I will, don't worry." the Medic confirmed.**

 **"Thanks." I said in reply before I left the medical wing and headed for the Prince's Dome.**

 **I was happy that all of the wolves had names now, before I would just call them things like "Little hairballs" which is what they used to look like but now they looked like miniture versions of their parents. I reached the tunnel which led to the Prince's Dome and the Guards stopped me, I had to be searched of course but that was the standard procedure.**

 **"State your business here." one of the Guards said gruffly.**

 **"I am here to tell the Princes about the wolves. They want two of the wolf pups to act as guards within the Dome itself." I explained.**

 **"Very well, you may proceed to the Dome." the Guard remarked.**

 **"Thank you, I won't be long." I said as I walked further down the tunnel until I got to the entrance of the Prince's Dome. As luck would have it Prince Paris was just exiting as I arrived so he let me into the Dome (the door can only be opened by a Prince touching it from the outside or opening it from the inside) I walked to where the thrones were and I waited to be acknowledged, when Prince Mika ver Leth saw me I bowed to him out of respect.**

 **"I wondered when I'd see you in here again, what can we do for you?" Prince Mika asked me.**

 **"Actually I don't need anything, I just came to tell you that the wolf pups will soon be big enough to start guarding the inside of the Dome, I have named your two pups Bandit and Delta. They are nearly ready to leave their mother now that they're eating solid food." I remarked.**

 **"That is good news, I have been looking forward to having wolves in here for a while. They will do their job well and provide extra security for us." Prince Mika said, he sounded pleased.**

 **"I'll bring them to you in a week or so, I want to get the ceremony out of the way first." I admitted.**

 **"We are prepared for the ceremony and we have finalised the order of service, there isn't long to go before you will become Larten's blessed mate." Prince Vancha added.**

 **"I am getting really nervous now, I just want it to go well. I have been waiting for so long." I replied.**

 **"Don't worry, we've made sure that every detail is in place and you've had rehearsals so you know what is going to happen." Prince Mika reassured me.**

 **"I am looking forward to wearing my dress, you'll love it when you see it." I stated excitedly.**

 **"If you like we could bring the date of the ceremony forward, everything is in place and we are ready to go so it is up to you." Prince Mika suggested.**

 **"It isn't just up to me, Larten has to have a say in this too." I responded.**

 **"What do you want?" Prince Vancha asked me directly.**

 **"If it were up to me then I'd have the ceremony taking place sooner rather than later. I have waited for ages as it is." I answered honestly.**

 **"Maybe we can bring the ceremony forward by a night or two, what do you think?" Prince Mika asked the other Princes.**

 **"It is up to Larten and his pledged mate, that is my opinion." Prince Vancha replied.**

 **"I can see the merits of bringing the ceremony forward but I am agreement with Prince Vancha, the pledged couple must have a say in this decision." Prince Paris added.**

 **"I think that we should keep the original date, when schedules change at short notice it can cause clashes with other events." Prince Darren responded, he was young but wise.**

 **"I do not mind either way, it is up to the pledged couple to decide." Prince Arrow stated.**

 **"It is better if we keep the original date, much as I would like to bring the ceremony forward Prince Darren is correct. I would hate for my ceremony to clash with another event." I concluded.**

 **"Then it is agreed, the original date stands. Thank you for informing us about the progress of the wolf pups." Prince Paris announced.**

 **"I need to go now and check the pups, they need feeding." I said before I bowed to the assembled Princes, turned around and then I left their Dome.**

 **My wolves were hungry, they needed to eat frequently or their wounds wouldn't heal. The wolves had to keep their strength up so I gave them extra meals. After I had fed seven of the pups, Sasha and Shadow I went to check on the wolf pup who was in the medical wing.**

 **I was pleased to see that Luka was walking around the medical wing, he had some kind of collar on that prevented him from ripping out his stitches. I threw some chunks of rabbit down onto the floor, I had to remove the collar so that he could eat. Luka devoured the rabbit so quickly that I had to leave the medical wing to go and get some more food for him, he wasn't a little hairball any longer although when he curled up he still looked a bit like one.**

 **I had made some temporary collars for my wolves, I needed to get some proper ones but I didn't know where to get them from. The mountain didn't provide pet supplies!**

 **I decided to ask Larten about it, I'm sure that he would know where to get some collars from. Larten knew where to buy jewellery from because he had bought some for me. I was sure that a jeweller could make some wolf sized collars, they were similar to choker style necklaces.**

 **"Larten, I need to ask you a favour." I said calmly.**

 **"What is that my beloved?" Larten asked me.**

 **"I would like you to arrange it so that all of the wolves have their own collars please, you've bought me jewellery so this won't be any different." I requested politely.**

 **"I will see what I can do for you." Larten replied.**

 **"Thank you, the wolves don't need anything too fancy but they need to have individual collars so that I know which wolf is which. They all look the same now." I explained.**

 **"Have they got names now?" Larten queried.**

 **"Yes, all of the wolves have names. The Medic helped me to name them. The names of the adults are Sasha and Shadow as you know but then we also have Starr, Saphira, Luka, Titan, Bandit, Delta, Loki and Thor. Those are the pups, Luka was the badly injured pup but he's doing well. He survived the night, he's eating and drinking too so the panic is over." I revealed.**

 **"The names are appropriate, I can see that you have thought about them carefully." Larten remarked.**

 **"I tried to pick names that are easy to remember but suitable for wolves, I didn't want anything that was too cute or too human." I responded.**

 **"I agree, wolves are wild creatures and they are not meant to be pets. However it seems like your wolves are an exception, I will visit a friend of mine and he will be able to assist me with getting some collars. I will make sure that they are decent ones too, no expense spared." Larten confirmed.**

 **"Thank you, I was going to the Halls of Sport so maybe we could go together?" I asked.**

 **"Very well, I feel like challenging Gavnur to a wrestling match." Larten stated.**

 **"That'll be fun for me to watch, you'll hear me cheering you on of course." I replied as we walked down the tunnel that led to the Halls of Sport. We walked hand in hand, this made a change because usually Larten wasn't too keen on public displays of affection even if it was only hand holding.**

 **Over the past few nights Larten had been more attentive towards me, he was holding my hand more often and he kissed me frequently. It was like Larten had changed, he seemed to be very much in love with me and now he wanted the clan to know that fact. I think it was Larten's way of saying to the clan that I was his mate and nobody else's.**

 **I couldn't wait to start wearing my mateship band, I wanted to know what it looked like. I also had clan members referring to me as Madam even though I had no official rank, I wasn't sure if vampiresses could become Generals. I knew that any vampire who wished to become a General had to take the Trials of Death and that I didn't fancy, if I failed any of the Trials and I survived then I'd be executed. I didn't want to die, the only vampires who couldn't be executed were the Princes.**

 **This is how Darren Shan as he was known back then survived after failing the Trial known as The Blooded Boars, he ran away and then he discovered Kurda's treachery. Darren came back to the mountain to raise the alarm and his actions saved the clan. A battle ensued; after the battle was over the Princes decided that because Darren had risked everything to save the clan he was to be declared a Vampire Prince, so Darren Shan then became Prince Darren of the Vampire Clan and the whole mountain celebrated his investiture.**

 **This happened a long time before I came along, I only heard about it from Gavnur and Gavnur liked to embellish stories a little bit. It was a great story though, I loved the part where Gavnur said that he had got lost in the tunnels (which was very possible) and missed most of the action. Some of the clan believed that Gavnur had been killed but they were mistaken to their great relief.**

 **When Larten and I arrived in the Halls of Sport there were quite a few things going on, lots of matches were taking place and we sat down to watch them. Larten wanted to challenge Gavnur to a wrestling match but Gavnur wasn't in the Halls of Sport, I offered to spar on the Bars instead but nobody wanted to play an informal match so I had no opponent.**

 **I couldn't wait to start being trained how to duel, it was one of those things that I had to learn but I just hadn't got around to it yet. I had to find somebody who would be willing to teach me how to duel and that was proving to be difficult.**

 **If Arra had still been alive I would have asked her to teach me, however if Arra were still alive then I probably wouldn't be in the position that I am in now. I felt a little bit sad that I never got to meet Arra, I would have looked to her to show me how a vampiress of good standing is supposed to behave. She could have been a good influence on me and she could have taught me how to fight incase another battle kicked off.**

 **I was looking up at the Bars, I had only been on them once or twice.**

 **"Thinking of having a go?" Vanez asked me.**

 **"I wish I knew how to duel, however no-one has ever taught me. I wouldn't be so bored if I could challenge vampires to a duel." I remarked.**

 **"I would teach you but I'm not very good at it. I know the rules inside and out, as for the actual duelling it is not something I take part in." Vanez said in response.**

 **"That's OK, it isn't a big deal." I replied.**

 **"If you want to duel then why have you not asked me to duel with you?" Larten asked me.**

 **"I didn't want to upset you, I thought it'd bring back too many painful memories of you and Arra. I know that you and her used to duel all the time, I'm not her and I don't want to become too much like her either." I explained.**

 **"I understand, you are correct that I used to duel with Arra frequently but that is because she used to challenge me, if you turn down a duel or challenge then it makes you look bad. It makes you look weak, if somebody challenges you then you should accept their challenge, it is the vampire way." Larten informed me.**

 **"I see, I didn't know that. Nobody has ever challenged me to a match." I said.**

 **"They will do when you have been trained, at the moment it would not be a fair fight as you have no chance of beating them." Larten replied.**

 **"I've killed vampaneze, how hard can it be?" I asked.**

 **"You were very bloody lucky, you could have been killed quite easily." Larten snapped at me.**

 **"But I survived and I'm still here to tell the tale." I responded.**

 **"Thanks to me, without me you would be dead. I saved your life with that antidote and do not forget that fact either." Larten reiterated.**

 **"I've never forgotten, I am forever in your debt because you saved my life and you didn't have to do that." I said humbly.**

 **"No, I did not have to save your life. I chose to save your life because I wanted you to become my assisant, I had no idea that we were going to fall in love with one another, it just happened." Larten admitted.**

 **"I pledged myself to you because I fell scars over the Bars in love with you, when I saw your body I wished to touch it so badly. I wanted to be loved by somebody who knows how to treat a woman right." I explained.**

 **"I know that in your past you were hurt, I wanted to be the one that healed the hurt. Your human life was not going anywhere either, now you have freedom and financial security." Larten confirmed.**

 **"I have everything that I could want, you've given me more than what I could ever have imagined and I'm very grateful to you." I stated.**

 **"I know that it is your birthday coming up soon, usually vampires do not bother to celebrate birthdays." Larten commented.**

 **"At least you remembered, that means something to me." I answered honestly.**

 **"I might have bought you something too, but you must wait until it is your birthday before I give it to you." Larten revealed.**

 **"You are such a tease, now I'll be wondering what it is and I'll count down the nights until you give it to me." I admitted.**

 **"I know that you will absolutely love it when you see it, let me say that it will match some of the items that you already have." Larten confirmed.**

 **"You really didn't have to get me anything, you have bought more than enough gifts for me. My two rings on their own must have cost a small fortune, I love them though." I concluded.**

 **"It is of no concern to you how much money I spent on your rings and other jewels, that is between myself and Seba. No-one else should be concerned with my financial situation, all you need to know is that I have more than enough funds to look after you and keep you living comfortably." Larten reassured me.**

 **"I didn't mean to pry into your personal business, I only meant to say that you don't need to spend money on me, I'm not a gold digger." I replied humbly.**

 **"I know that you are not a gold digger, I have dated gold diggers and they are not very nice at all. They never seem to be satisfied with anything, it is as if nothing is ever going to be good enough for them." Larten informed me.**

 **"I was brought up in poverty so I got used to having very little from a young age, I learnt to survive with next to nothing so now that I have you doting on me it is a big shock to the system." I confessed.**

 **"I could tell that you did not have much as a child, I had next to nothing when I was a young boy. I worked in a factory, it was hell. I ran away and Seba Nile came to my rescue but we will not go into my past, I may tell you a little bit about it later on but not whilst we are in public." Larten remarked.**

 **"That is fine, I would like to hear more about your past. You know everything about my past, until I met you my life was boring. I enjoyed being at college but I felt deep down that I was destined for greater things." I stated.**

 **"I miss Malora so much, I miss Arra too. I cannot believe that she has been gone for twelve years, Malora died so long ago now but I have never, ever forgotten her. She truly did love me and I loved her, I took her purity from her and Arra gave me hers also." Larten confided in me.**

 **"I am only sorry that mine was taken from me before we met or I would have given it to you willingly." I acknowledged.**

 **"It is alright, at least you are honest. It is so hard to find pure ladies now, even if I wanted one I could not find one. If I did find a pure lady then there would be very little chance of her being able to handle me so it is of no matter. I am happy with you, I love you, I am pledged to you and that is all that counts." Larten reiterated to me.**

 **"Can we go to your quarters? I want to kiss you deeply." I whispered in Larten's ear, I had a suggestive look in my eyes.**

 **"We can indeed go to my quarters, I was going to suggest the same thing to you." Larten replied quietly in my own ear.**

 **We left the Halls of Sport and headed directly to Larten's quarters. I would have suggested going to my quarters but Larten's coffin was more comfortable and his quarters were closer.**

 **We arrived at Larten's quarters, he opened the door and we went inside. I took Larten's hand and I kissed him, I had to go up onto my tiptoes to reach his lips because he was quite a bit taller than me. I was used to it by now seeing as I had kissed Larten countless times, I didn't hold back either. My kiss was full of lust and it was meant to be lustful. This wasn't the kind of kiss that we shared in the Halls occasionally, this was meant for nobody's eyes because it led onto other things.**

 **I stopped kissing Larten briefly but only so that I could go over to his coffin, I got undressed and Larten did too.**

 **"Do you want me to mate with you again already? We only mated a few hours ago." Larten asked me.**

 **"I want to kiss you and then I want to go on top, I didn't go on top last time. I like it when I'm on top of you, it makes my orgasm more powerful because you are able to penetrate me deeper." I said as I positioned myself so that I was on top of Larten, I sat down on top of his rock hard manhood which slipped inside me like a dream and then I began to ride him. It didn't take me very long to orgasm, I cried out loudly in sheer ecstasy and Larten took that as his queue to make me scream even louder. I was sure that most of the clan could hear us but I didn't care, I just wanted Larten to satisfy me again because I was really turned on. As for holding back until after our ceremony that had gone out of the window, our lack of having sex had just made us want each other even more.**

 **When we were through having sex we rested for a while, it wasn't as intense as our earlier session but it hadn't left me wanting either.**

 **"That was amazing." I said by way of a compliment.**

 **"I do try to satisfy your lust for me, so much for us waiting until after the ceremony." Larten replied.**

 **"We held off for a long time but in the end we just couldn't help ourselves, we have high sex drives so it is only natural for us to want to mate frequently with each other. It is healthy and perfectly acceptable for a pledged couple to mate as often as we do, it is probably expected of us too." I commented.**

 **"I agree, it is good that vampires cannot have children or there would be babies being born all the time. With the amount of sex we have you would have fallen pregnant without fail if we were humans." Larten stated plainly.**

 **"I couldn't imagine trying to explain that to my parents, they would slaughter me if they found out that I was pregnant and unmarried. Luckily for me that is something I will never have to worry about." I responded.**

 **"No, you will not ever have to worry about falling pregnant. The only way it can happen is if Mr Tiny and Lady Evanna agree to it, only Lady Evanna can carry the baby of a vampire. Many have asked her but so far she has refused to play any part in it." Larten told me.**

 **"I am happy with the wolf pack, they give me trouble enough as it is. I don't think the clan would like it if we had a baby either, they'd get really jealous of us and it'd cause problems." I replied.**

 **"I agree, besides I do not like children." Larten stated plainly.**

 **"I am not too fond of them either, they are noisy and they make a mess everywhere. The idea of giving birth is not nice either, I'm glad that I'll never have to put my body through that trauma." I acknowledged.**

 **No, giving birth is a nasty and potentially lethal business. It should not be done unless the woman is young and healthy enough to survive it, I have witnessed women giving birth, I have assisted in delivering babies too but trust me you do not want to go through it." Larten remarked.**

 **"If you don't like children then why help a woman to give birth?" I asked.**

 **"It is a good thing to save a life, that is why I helped them. Without me they would have died for certain, I have also assisted in animal labours before." Larten explained to me.**

 **"I know, you helped Sasha when she was in labour. I was there, I helped out too." I claimed.**

 **"Yes, you did help. We worked together and now we have a pack of wolves that can assist us here in the mountain." Larten remarked.**

 **"It wasn't intended, I mean that I never planned to breed my wolves but nature took over. At least they're healing after their attack by those bloody mountain lions. It was unusual for them to attack and it is a shame that they had to die, mountain lions are beautiful animals. They normally live in America so how on Earth did they get here on this continent?" I asked.**

 **"I really could not tell you, I am trying to work it out. Maybe some humans thought this area was unpopulated, perhaps they decided to re-introduce these creatures into the wild not realising the problems that they would cause by being released here." Larten explained.**

 **"That's possible, humans are always trying to do what they think is best. Although people mean well they interfere with the Earth and as a result they cause more harm than good." I said in agreement.**

 **"What do we do about the mountain lions? We cannot keep on killing them, it is not as though they are here by choice. I only killed those lions because they attacked me, I would never normally kill any wild creature unless I had no other option." Larten claimed.**

 **"Maybe we could set up a barrier so that they have part of the woodland and we keep the rest of it, that way they can live their lives and we've still got plenty of land that we can utilise." I suggested.**

 **"It would take too long, the land here is vast and most of it is very steep, impassible cliffs with sheer drops on either side of them as you found out. There are only a few safe areas that can be crossed, what we need to do is confine the lions to an area that has a huge gap between our mountain and them, they cannot cross the gap and we can carry on living here as we always have done." Larten revealed.**

 **"In that case the lions need to be moved out, maybe they could actually be lowered into the ravine. There is water and prey down there, as well as a few trees so they'd be alright. They couldn't harm us because we're all the way up here and they'd be down below us, there must be a hundred foot drop or more down into that ravine so it isn't like they could climb out of it either." I responded.**

 **"There is one pathway that leads down to the ravine, if we blocked it up so that the lions could not escape but we could still pass then the idea would work. There may not be any more lions here for a while, however it is good to have a plan to deal with them in place." Larten answered.**

 **"I concur, the Princes will sort it out. The safety of our clan is paramount after all." I acknowledged.**

 **"We should focus upon our ceremony, there is not much time left until the ceremony takes place. I think that it would be a wise idea for us to have a full dress rehearsal, that way we can fix any issues before the real ceremony takes place." Larten stated.**

 **"We've had rehearsals already, we can't have a dress rehearsal because it is bad luck for the groom to see his bride in her dress before the actual ceremony." I replied.**

 **"In that case you can wear your regular clothing, I insist upon holding a full dress rehearsal with everybody doing their parts." Larten insisted.**

 **"Very well Larten, if that is your wish then I shall not object to it." I said obidiently.**

 **"I will go and inform the Princes, they will need to add it into their schedules. Also we need to let everybody who is involved in the ceremony know about the full dress rehearsal. When should we hold it?" Larten asked.**

 **"I guess that depends upon when the Princes can fit it in, they've got a lot of other business to attend to as well as this dress rehearsal." I remarked.**

 **"You are correct, every time we speak you sound more and more like a vampiress. Your humanity is fading, soon the Purge will hit you and that is when the vampire blood in your veins will take over your remaining human cells. Even if I do not blood you again you will end up becoming a full blood vampiress because of the Purge." Larten revealed to me.**

 **"Oh right, I was aware of the Purge but I wasn't sure when it'd hit me. I thought that your vampiric semen would make me become a full vampiress eventually anyway." I said curiously.**

 **"It can do that but it is rare, it affects humans more than half vampiresses. Sometimes a human will get a taste for blood and raw flesh after mating with a vampire, if this happens then blooding them is the best option because their human stomach cannot digest blood or raw flesh, imagine craving something that you cannot have no matter how badly you want it." Larten explained to me.**

 **"It would be torture, I couldn't live like that." I admitted.**

 **"Neither can humans, that is one reason why mating with them is not recommended. I have had a very promiscuous past but I have changed my ways. It does not help when ladies take one look at you and become completely entranced by your prescence. You try to avoid contact with them but every once in a while the preditor takes over, they become your prey and you cannot control your urges." Larten acknowledged.**

 **"I understand, I'm lucky that we have found each other. We keep each other's primal urges at bay." I stated.**

 **"I do my best to control myself and I always do my utmost to keep you satisfied, if I am satisfying you and vice versa then we do not need to look elsewhere." Larten replied.**

 **"When I was in the wilderness there were times that I wanted you to touch my body so badly but you weren't there, I had to keep myself distracted or the urges would have driven me insane. When I fell over the edge of that cliff and I saw your face again I realised exactly how much I had missed you, when we were curled up together in that medical bay it felt so good to have you next to me again." I said quietly.**

 **"When I saw your wolves standing by the cliff edge and going crazy I knew that something was wrong, I have never seen wolves bond with any vampire in the way that they have bonded with you. I saw your heart, that told me all I needed to know. You used every bit of strength to make that signal, I knew that if you did not make it then at least you had used the last of your strength to tell me how you felt about about me. I was not about to let you die but you were in bad way, I could not be sure if you were going to live or not." Larten explained.**

 **"I am a fighter, if I can take down vampaneze then a little tumble off a cliff wasn't going to kill me. Being stabbed was far more dangerous and that was more likely to kill me than that fall. The fall itself wasn't the problem, it was the risk of exposure, infection, lack of food, water and things like that which could have killed me. I'm lucky that my wolves came through for me, I don't know what I would have done if not for them." I admitted.**

 **"You may have died down there and been eaten by other wild creatures, then I would have always wondered what had happened to you if I had found no evidence of your demise." Larten stated.**

 **"If that had been the case then rest assured that I'd be watching down on you from Paradise, my soul couldn't rest in peace though because it'd be waiting for your soul to join it." I replied.**

 **"It is not worth thinking about, I must organise something to mark the passing of Arra. I have not done it yet and all this talk of dying has reminded me about it. I will have to go to the place where Arra fell and place some flowers down for her. I cannot think of what else to do, that is a fitting tribute to her I think." Larten responded.**

 **"I agree, that is simple to do, it doesn't involve any input from the clan and it won't take up too much time. It will however show that you still think about Arra and that you won't forget your former mate either." I acknowledged.**

 **"I am never going to forget any of my former mates but they are in my past, you are my future." Larten reiterated.**

 **"I can't imagine spending the next five or maybe six centuries with you, won't you get bored of me?" I asked.**

 **"I honestly cannot answer that question because I do not have the ability to look into the future." Larten replied.**

 **"What happens if we get bored of each other or fall out of love with one another?" I asked.**

 **"If that happens then we will dissolve our blessed mateship and move on with new mates but we will still remain incredibly close, after all the bond we have is very strong." Larten remarked plainly.**

 **"It would kill me to see you in the arms of somebody else, even if a Prince wanted to mate with me I don't think that I could love him as much as you." I answered.**

 **"I want you to know that if something happens to me then I want you to be happy, if you fall in love with another and I am no longer around then do not feel guilty about it. What I mean to say is do not spend too long mourning for me if I should die in battle, it is not likely to happen but it is possible. If I do die before my time then everything I own will be yours, no matter what happens to me you will be taken care of." Larten told me.**

 **"Let's talk about something else, this topic is depressing." I said, the thought of Larten dying killed me inside. I couldn't imagine living without him.**

 **I knew that we wouldn't be together forever because nobody lives forever, not even vampires but I hoped that I'd be with Larten for a long time. We'd been together for a long time already, the time seemed to flit past and as it stood I wasn't sure how long we'd been together.**

 **I often thought about my parents and what they'd say if I told them about all the things I'd done in my life since meeting Larten. As far as they knew I was away at college studying hard, I hadn't been in touch with them for a long time. Maybe they thought something was wrong or that I was missing, what if they had the police out searching for me? What if they'd done television appeals in order to find me with no luck? I had never even considered how long it'd been since I'd been in touch with my family.**

 **"Larten, we have a problem." I said, it was my way of making light of a potentially serious issue.**

 **"What problem is that?" Larten asked me.**

 **"I haven't spoken to my parents for years. What if they think I'm missing or something and they've had the police out searching for me?" I asked.**

 **"What did you tell them when you left college?" Larten asked me.**

 **"I didn't tell them anything much, I just said that I had a job that involved a lot of travelling and that I was leaving college." I answered.**

 **"There are only two options available to us if we want to solve this problem. We can either fake your death or we can return to your hometown and visit your parents. Either choice has its own merits and its own risks. The choice is yours Anna, I will not influence your decision." Larten revealed to me.**

 **I didn't like the idea of faking my own death but then again if I did that then I'd be free, my parents wouldn't ask awkward questions about my location, also if they thought that I was dead then they wouldn't expect me to visit them either. On the other hand if I visited my parents and explained the situation then maybe they'd understand, I'd tell them that I'd got a job travelling with a circus as an animal trainer (that would explain why I had wolves as pets) and then I'd introduce Larten to them as my fiancé. I wasn't sure how well it'd go down but if I chose this path then I'd have little choice but to introduce Larten to my parents.**

 **I sat and thought things over for a long time, I weighed up the pros and cons of each option and in the end I decided to return to my hometown. I would make a final decision when I got there, for now though I was undecided. I'd ask Mr Tall if he could help out with transportation because taking two wolves to my hometown wouldn't be easy. I couldn't leave them behind because they were bonded to me, if I left my wolves behind then they'd search for me constantly and it would stress them out. I hadn't spent one night away from my wolves since I had met them. The pups were staying behind because they were now old enough and big enough to leave their mother, I'd only be taking Sasha and Shadow with me back to my hometown.**

 **"Larten, I've decided to return to my hometown and when I'm there I'll make a final decision as to which course of action to take. Sasha and Shadow are coming with us too, we cannot leave them here." I announced with certainty in my voice.**

 **"Very well I accept your choice, however we will not travel back to your hometown until our blessed mateship has taken place." Larten stated.**

 **"I agree, how much longer do we have to go until the big night?" I asked.**

 **"I am not sure, I am no good at remembering dates." Larten said.**

 **"We agreed that the ceremony would take place on the twentieth of June, that cannot be far away now. Mr Tall has a calendar so he'll know what the date is." I replied.**

 **"Go and find him then, you also have to speak with him about your wolves and how to transport them back to your hometown." Larten reminded me.**

 **"I know that, I'll go and speak with Mr Tall and then I'll come and find you later on when everything has been arranged." I concluded.**

 **"I agree, that is the best course of action. I will meet you in here later on once you have spoken with Hibernius." Larten remarked.**

 **"I won't be long, can you search for Mr Tall so that I can find him quicker please?" I requested.**

 **"Alright, give me a moment." Larten replied, then he closed his eyes and focused on locating Mr Tall's mental waves. It took Larten only a couple of minutes to find Mr Tall's waves, Larten knew exactly what to look for.**

 **"Where is Mr Tall?" I asked.**

 **"Hibernius is in the Halls of Sport watching a match. Go and speak with him, he is expecting you." Larten revealed.**

 **"Oh alright, thank you for finding him for me. It has saved me quite a bit of time." I acknowledged.**

 **"You are welcome, I would do anything for you my dark angel." Larten answered sweetly.**

 **"I'm going now, I'll meet you here later." I responded, then I left to go and meet up with Mr Tall in the Halls of Sport...**


	26. Chapter 25

**I'm Just a Half Vampire**

 **Chapter 25**

 **I found Mr Tall in the Halls of Sport, he was watching a match. It wasn't wrestling, it was some kind of martial arts. It looked like a cross between kick boxing and Karate but it was extremely quick and very violent, knives were being used as well. Normally matches didn't involve weaponry unless you were duelling on the Bars.**

 **"I've never seen a match like this before, it is far more intense than what I normally watch." I said to Mr Tall.**

 **"It is called Muay Thai and it is viscious when vampires take part in it, it is nothing like the Muay Thai that humans practice. These fights have ended in death before now, that is why they're so rare but every so often two vampire Generals will go head to head and they don't hold back either, that is what's taking place here." Mr Tall explained to me.**

 **"Oh right, will one of the Generals in this match be killed?" I asked, I was concerned.**

 **"It is a possibility but that is the risk that these Generals are prepared to take, from the moment they step into the ring they know that one of them may be killed." Mr Tall remarked plainly.**

 **"I understand, what does the victor receive?" I asked.**

 **"There is no prize as such. The only thing the victor gets is respect from his fellow Generals." Mr Tall explained.**

 **"OK, I get it. I didn't come here to discuss fights to the death between Generals, I came to ask you what the date is and I also need you to help me." I responded, I had to speak loudly because of the noise levels in the Hall of Sport that we were in.**

 **"The date is June fifteenth I think, your ceremony is on the twentieth so you haven't got long to wait now before you become Larten's blessed mate. What else do you need my help with?" Mr Tall asked me after revealing the date.**

 **"I'm planning to return to my hometown and I need a way of transporting myself, Larten and my wolves to there from here. We aren't going there until after the ceremony." I stated.**

 **"It is a long way away from here, where exactly is your hometown?" Mr Tall enquired.**

 **"I used to live in England before I met Larten and then my address became wherever the Cirque Du Freak was located." I replied.**

 **"I understand, as luck would have it the Cirque Du Freak will be doing an English tour around the major cities there. You can travel with us and then I will put on a show in your hometown, that way you can get back there safely without any worries and your wolves can come too. They'll have to stay in a secure kennel behind a fence wherever we're parked up but that is no trouble. You'll be responsible for them." Mr Tall explained.**

 **"OK, I'll go and let Larten know. You have just made my life a whole lot easier. Thank you Mr Tall." I said humbly, then I went back to the quarters where Larten was waiting for me.**

 **I caught up with Larten, he was finishing off the job of polishing the ornamental weapons. I had started to do it but I hadn't quite finished so Larten completed the task that I had been meaning to go back to.**

 **"I've spoken with Mr Tall, we're in luck because Mr Tall is doing a tour in England and he's performing in my hometown, that means we can travel all the way there and back again with the wolves safely and we won't have to worry about anything." I revealed excitedly.**

 **"That is good news, did you find out what the date is?" Larten asked.**

 **"Yes, it is the fifteenth of June tonight." I replied.**

 **"We have not got much time left until the ceremony at all, everything is prepared and all of the guests are here so now we just have to wait for the twentieth to come around." Larten stated.**

 **"I know, I'm really looking forward to it. I just want to wear my dress and show it off to the clan. It really is stunning and it isn't too big or too small, it isn't too puffed out either. Some dresses are really big at the bottom and I don't like them at all because they swamp my body in fabric." I explained.**

 **"When I was a young man wealthy ladies wore corsets and big hoops under their dresses, fashion has moved on considerably since then as you probably know." Larten remarked.**

 **"Yes, fashion has evolved and people have changed a lot too thanks to science and technology." I said in conclusion.**

 **"Certain events in history have also shaped how the world is today, I was not part of any major events as such but I have witnessed many things in my lifetime, I am nearly two hundred years old after all." Larten stated.**

 **"Gavnur told me how old you are, I didn't believe him at first. It wasn't until Seba explained to me about vampires only aging at a tenth of the human rate that I finally understood how you can be old but young at the same time." I responded.**

 **"I am considered young by vampire standards, most vampires in our clan are at least three hundred to four hundred years old. Gavnur is one of the youngest vampires here and Prince Paris is the oldest, he is over seven hundred years old." Larten revealed, I was shocked to hear that Prince Paris was over seven hundred years old. It made me wonder how long I would live for, I hoped that I'd live for a long time but nothing was guarenteed.**

 **Finally the evening of my blessed mateship ceremony arrived and the entire clan were buzzing, they couldn't stop talking about it. I was in my quarters with Jenna and Kiera getting ready, they helped me to put my dress on and then Kiera did my hair for me, she spun it up into an ornate style that would hold my tiara and veil in place. I put my jewellery on and then I stood back to look at myself in the mirror that had been placed in my quarters. Jenna applied my make-up and I really did look like a bride, albeit an undead one!**

 **I had an almost ghostly white complexion, dark eyes, blood red lips and the jewellery I was wearing sparkled and flashed in the torchlight. I didn't want to look like a bride of Dracula but if I'd have put foundation on then it would have made me look very tanned against my naturally pale skin, I left my face as it was and I just had my eyes and lips made over. I had dark eyeshadow on but it was topped off with blue, silver and red glitter, I was wearing winged eyeliner too in jet black that really stood out against my dress. I looked at myself in the mirror, adjusted my tiara slightly, pulled my veil over my face and then I was ready to go. I waited for Jenna and Kiera to finish getting themselves ready and then we all headed down to the Hall of Ceremonies together.**

 **Gavnur was waiting for me, he had a suit on and a top hat. I wasn't used to seeing Gavnur all dressed up but he looked really smart.**

 **"Wow Anna, you look amazing." Gavnur complimented me when he saw me.**

 **"Thanks." I replied.**

 **"Have you remembered the rings?" Jenna asked.**

 **"Yes, they're safely stored in my pocket." Gavnur stated proudly.**

 **"When do we go in?" I asked impatiently.**

 **"We enter when we hear the music, Larten is already on the platform. When the Princes have taken their places the music will start and then we will walk into the Hall." Gavnur explained.**

 **"I feel sick, what if I mess up my vows?" I said.**

 **"You won't mess them up, you'll be fine." Gavnur reassured me.**

 **"I hope so, I can't make an idiot of myself infront of the entire clan and the Cirque Du Freak let alone Mr Tiny." I replied.**

 **Then the music started, it was crunch time and my brain went completely blank. Gavnur walked me into the Hall of Ceremonies, I stood on the platform opposite Larten who looked really good in his own suit, it was different to Gavnur's and he had a top hat on, in fact a lot of the assembled vampires were wearing top hats, even Mr Tiny and Mr Tall had dressed for the occasion. Mr Tiny was wearing a blue suit instead of his usual yellow suit and Mr Tall was dressed in a tuxedo. All of the Cirque Du Freak performers were dressed in their best as well, it made me happy to know that everybody had made an effort.**

 **The Princes were also wearing their best robes, these robes were normally saved for investitures only. I stood on the platform shaking like a leaf, I was so nervous.**

 **"Good evening to you all and I bid you welcome to this very special occasion. I would also like to extend my welcome message to our guests from the Cirque Du Freak who have joined us for this ceremony." Prince Mika announced to the gathered clan and Cirque Du Freak members.**

 **"Anna, are you OK? You're shaking." Prince Darren asked me quietly.**

 **"I'm very nervous, my brain has gone blank and I cannot remember my vows, I feel sick because I'm so nervous." I admitted.**

 **"Would you like to take a moment to compose yourself before we begin the ceremony?" Prince Arrow asked me.**

 **"Yes, that would be good. I just need to breathe and focus for a minute." I replied.**

 **"Here are the vows, you can read them off the sheet of paper if you cannot remember them, nobody will think any worse of you for it." Gavnur said as he slipped me the piece of paper.**

 **"Just breathe, you'll be fine. Trust me because I'm a Prince." Prince Paris said.**

 **"OK, I'm ready. I've waited so long for this night after all." I acknowledged and then I stepped back into position on the platform.**

 **"I am now going to ask if any of you know why these two vampires may not come together in blessed mateship to speak out." Prince Mika said to the assembled guests, the hall was silent which was a good sign because it meant that nobody objected to our union.**

 **"There are no objections so now I am going to ask each of the two vampires standing here if they consent to this union." Prince Paris stated.**

 **"I consent to this union fully." I replied.**

 **"I also consent to this union without any objections or impediments." Larten remarked seriously.**

 **"Very well, the two vampires have given their verbal consent to be joined together as blessed mates. I will now ask them to say their vows to each other." Prince Arrow said.**

 **"I Larten Crepsley promise you Anna infront of these assembled witnesses that I shall stand by your side in battle, I shall share no other coffin but yours, I will love you and no other, I give you this ring in recognition of these promises, may this ring serve as a reminder of the promises that we have made to one another and like this ring may these promises never be broken." Larten vowed publicly before Gavnur handed him my mateship ring which he placed on my finger. Now it was my turn to say my vows, I held up the piece of paper and I began to read.**

 **"I Anna Kruspe promise you Larten infront of these assembled witnesses that I shall kick Gavnur Purl in the bum." I announced clearly, then I realised what I had just said and the whole hall erupted in laughter. Even the Princes were laughing, Prince Darren had handed me the joke vows and not the real vows and I felt really embarrased.**

 **"I am so sorry, I read the paper before realising what I was actually saying out aloud." I apologised to Larten, I felt terrible.**

 **Eventually the Princes asked for silence and everybody stopped laughing, it had been hilarious and I no longer felt nervous.**

 **"That was very entertaining, perhaps now you'd care to repeat your actual vows to Larten and not the joke ones." Prince Arrow chastised me.**

 **"I'm sorry Sire, I lost my focus but at least I am not feeling nervous now." I admitted.**

 **"That is alright, we all found the joke vow funny." Prince Mika interjected.**

 **I took a deep breath and then I slowly and calmly began to say my actual vows.**

 **"I Anna Kruspe promise you Larten infront of these assembled witnesses that I shall stand by your side in battle, I shall share no other coffin but yours, I will love you and no other, I give you this ring in recognition of these promises, may this ring serve as a reminder of the promises that we have made to one another and like this ring may these promises never be broken." I took Larten's mateship ring from Gavnur and I placed it on Larten's hand, just like he had done for me. Then the Princes spoke in turn.**

 **"I Prince Paris Skyle do hereby recognise and acknowledge the union of Larten Crepsley and Anna Kruspe, may they be happy together. I declare them to be blessed mates from this moment forwards." Prince Paris declared.**

 **"I Prince Mika Ver Leth also acknowledge the union of Larten Crepsley and Anna Kruspe, I declare that their blessed mateship is legal and valid according to our laws." Prince Mika announced.**

 **"I Prince Arrow recognise the union of Larten Crepsley and Anna Kruspe, I therefore declare them to be blessed mates." Prince Arrow stated.**

 **"I Prince Vancha March declare that Larten Crepsley and Anna Kruspe are officially blessed mates according to our laws and customs." Prince Vancha clarified.**

 **"I Prince Darren Shan declare Larten Crepsley and Anna Kruspe to be blessed mates, they have taken solumn vows and exchanged rings with each other. I recognise and support their union." Prince Darren concluded.**

 **After the Princes had officially declared us to be blessed mates the assembled clan members and guests who were in the hall cheered loudly.**

 **Larten and I walked towards each other on the platform, he lifted up my veil and he kissed me. It was passionate but not over the top. After we had shared our first kiss as blessed mates we led the assembled clan members into the hall, this was the hall where the entertainment and the feast would be taking place.**

 **I took my seat in the hall and Larten sat beside me, all of our closest friends joined us at the high table. It felt like a real wedding with a few differences.**

 **"Larten, this is just how I imagined my blessed mateship would be. You have pulled out all the stops to make this happen and I've never been happier." I commented.**

 **"For you nothing is too much trouble, I promised that you would have the best of everything and I hope that I have done a good job." Larten replied.**

 **"Larten, you have done an amazing job. Everything you have done for me is more than what I could ever ask for." I acknowledged.**

 **"If you think that this is good just wait until later on, I have prepared something that I think you will love." Larten replied.**

 **"What is that?" I asked.**

 **"I am not going to tell you." Larten stated.**

 **"Oh go on, I'll be wondering about it all night now." I complained.**

 **"No, wait until later. Now it is the time for us to eat and drink, I have managed to organise a cake for you as well." Larten told me just as the food started arriving.**

 **"Wow, talk about a feast. I don't know where to begin." I remarked as I grabbed hold of a whole roasted rabbit and started to eat it. I threw a piece of venison down for Sasha and Shadow who were both laying down by my feet. The wolf pups were also in the hall with their new guardians, Bandit bounded over to me and Luca also came over to where I was sitting. The others were being fed scraps so initially they were too interested in the food to come over to me, however when I called them they responded instantly. Even though the wolf pups had new guardians they would never forget me, they were wearing collars now too.**

 **"Bandit stop that." I commanded. Bandit had been rubbing his head all over my dress, I knew that keeping my dress clean with wolves around was going to be a challenge.**

 **"Delta, stop scrounging. You've had plenty of scraps already." I said as Delta whined at me for yet more food.**

 **"These wolves are spoilt rotten, they've been begging for scraps all night." Gavnur remarked.**

 **"That is my fault, I used to feed them under the table and now they think it is normal." I admitted.**

 **"It is a special occasion, I'm sure that the clan aren't paying much attention because they're all enjoying themselves." Gavnur replied.**

 **"Loki pack that in." I called out, Loki had been scratching himself excessively to the point where he'd got a bald patch on his back. Whenever I saw Loki scratching I'd stop it otherwise the fur would never grow back and his skin would get even more sore.**

 **"At least somebody has these wolves under control, they ignore me completely whenever I tell them to do anything." Seba added.**

 **"That is because I'm in charge of them, I've raised them from newborn pups. I'm a respected member of their pack but you aren't so that's why they obey me." I told Seba.**

 **"I thought as much, the bond you have with them is incredible." Seba acknowledged.**

 **"Yes, I agree." I concluded.**

 **"By the way one of your wolves has its paws up on that table. I think it is hungry." Seba notified me.**

 **"Thor, get down from there." I called out, Thor got down but not before he'd grabbed a leg of something and carried it off to eat it.**

 **"That was my leg of venison, your wolf grabbed it before I got a look in." one angry General said to me.**

 **"I'm so sorry about the wolves, they never behave like this. They're being so naughty and their new guardians seem to be ignoring their misdeeds too which doesn't help." I replied apologetically.**

 **"That doesn't change the fact that your wolf stole my dinner." the General responded.**

 **"Here, take this leg instead. I can't eat any more, I'm stuffed as it is." I offered as I ripped a leg of venison off of the carcass that was on our high table, this one had been spit roasted and covered in sauce.**

 **"Thanks, in future please try to keep your wolves under control." the General chastised me before he finally tucked into his replacement meal.**

 **The only wolves who were behaving themselves were Sasha, Shadow and Bandit. They were all asleep by my feet, the others were going from table to table getting attention and tasty snacks. This was not how I had raised my wolves but they weren't my responsibility now that they'd been given to their new guardians.**

 **"Delta get down." I heard Prince Arrow say sternly to Delta who had decided to jump up onto one of the thrones and sit on it.**

 **"Having trouble Sire?" I asked sarcastically.**

 **"No, it is just that this wolf needs to learn her place. She cannot jump up onto our thrones, neither can she continue to steal food and beg for scraps." Prince Arrow stated.**

 **"Just tell her to settle down, it isn't that hard. She will listen to you if you're firm with her." I replied.**

 **"Delta off, settle down." Prince Arrow said firmly, then Delta jumped off of Prince Vancha's thrown and lay down on the floor by Prince Arrow's feet.**

 **"See, I told you so. You just have to be consistant with them Sire." I responded.**

 **"I'll do my best to keep them under control. The wolves you've given to the Princes are supposed to guard us and our Dome, so far they've done nothing but steal food and howl at inappropriate hours." Prince Arrow complained.**

 **"Well I didn't name them Bandit and Delta for nothing, their names match their personalities." I reiterated.**

 **"Oh well, we'll manage. I'm sure when they're older they'll calm down a bit, after all they are both under a year old and very energetic." Prince Arrow concluded.**

 **"Yes, I'm sure that things will turn out fine in the end Sire. I'd better go and mingle with the guests. I've not really spoken to many people and I need to thank them for attending our blessed mateship." I explained to Prince Arrow.**

 **"I understand, you must not neglect your other guests on my account." Prince Arrow concluded as he sat down on his throne, the thrones had been moved into the Hall of Ceremonies especially for our blessed mateship celebrations. The thrones were extremely heavy, it took six vampires working together in order to carry each of the five thrones. Each throne required two Generals to lift and carry it, the sixth vampire held the doors open to make the job easier for the others. It had been a monumental but necessary task.**

 **I received a lot of compliments in relation to my dress, it sparkled because it had crystals on it along with beads and embroidery. My jewellery caught the eye of every clan member too, they wouldn't stop talking about how lucky I was and how much they envied me.**

 **After the feast had been devoured and every clan member had enjoyed their fill of wine and meat the music started, however some vampires were so full up that they couldn't really move let alone dance. I had stuffed myself with food because I knew I'd need all the energy I could get, I had a long night ahead of me and I wasn't expecting to sleep much if at all either.**

 **The music was odd, I hadn't heard anything like it before and I wasn't sure if I was enjoying listening to it or not. The other vampires seemed to enjoy it, some were singing but I couldn't understand a word of their song. It certainly wasn't English, it sounded Eastern European or perhaps Russian but I wasn't sure.**

 **"The music is strange." I commented to Larten.**

 **"It comes from Slovakia and they are singing in their native language. I can understand their song but you most likely will not be able to comprehend what the lyrics mean." Larten remarked.**

 **"I haven't got a clue, can't they play something a bit more popular?" I asked.**

 **"This is a traditional wedding song, the song tells of how a bride and groom marry and then all their friends wish them well. Each friend mentioned in the song makes a different wish for the happy couple." Larten explained to me.**

 **"Oh right, thanks for explaining it to me. I assume that you've organised some modern music as well?" I queried hopefully.**

 **"Wait and see, this band has almost finished their performance now." Larten told me.**

 **"OK, what's next after the music?" I enquired.**

 **"There will be a display outside for our entertainment, you will love it." Larten revealed, then the Slovakian music finished and the band packed away their instruments. There was a gap of about ten minutes and then another band started to play. The new band sang in English which meant that I could understand the lyrics, the songs were ones I hadn't heard before but they weren't bad, the guitarist was really good. As we had no electric in the mountain the instruments were all acoustic, there were no special effects or sound systems set up either as we had no way to plug them in and turn them on.**

 **When the second band had finished playing we all went outside to see the display that Larten had arranged. It turned out to be a firework display that lit up the night sky with multi-coloured sparkles and flashes. Mr Tall had helped to transport the fireworks, he knew a little bit about pyrotechnics as well so he had also helped to set up the display.**

 **"Wow, these are some of the best fireworks I've ever seen." I said during the display.**

 **"I thought that you would like them, it was not my idea but I went with it. It was Gavnur who came up with the idea and I arranged it with Hibernious." Larten remarked as the last three fireworks went off, they exploded and the sky was lit up with sparks of blue, gold, silverr and red.**

 **"That was awesome, thanks for arranging such a wonderful display. It means a lot to me." I said to Larten.**

 **"There are more things to enjoy, you have not seen the cake yet." Larten revealed.**

 **"We have a cake?" I asked, I was surprised.**

 **"You have a cake because you asked me for a cake. I have a roasted boar instead because that is much more to my taste." Larten explained.**

 **"Fair enough, I could do with something sweet to eat. I've not had any cake since leaving the Cirque Du Freak." I responded.**

 **"I asked Hibernious to assist me, there are no bakeries around here so he brought it with him. I told him that you had asked for a chocolate fudge cake so I think that is what Hibernious has brought for you." Larten explained.**

 **"I will thank him when I see him." I said.**

 **"You had better go and see that the wolves are behaving themselves." Larten reminded me.**

 **"Oh yeah, I had better go and check on them. They were causing quite a few problems during the feast." I replied before I went back inside, I needed to know if the wolves were causing trouble or not.**

 **When I re-entered the Hall of Ceremonies I saw that Thor had jumped up onto one of the tables, he was pulling meat off of a venison carcass and eating it really quickly, talk about an opportunistic animal!**

 **"Thor, get down from there right now." I commanded and Thor just looked at me, then he continued to rip meat off of the carcass as if I wasn't even there. Thor dropped a bone on the floor and Saphira grabbed it, she carried it off to a corner and ate it.**

 **"Thor, get down." I commanded again, I was more firm this time, Thor got off the table but he dragged the carcass onto the floor with him too. He yapped, the other wolves joined him apart from Saphira and they ate the whole thing between them, in no time at all the venison carcass was gone. At least that would feed them for a little while, I couldn't understand why they were all so hungry. They'd been given loads of scraps during the feast, in fact they had been spoilt rotten. After the wolves had polished off the venison carcass they seemed to settle down and sleep for a while, at least most of the young ones did. Sasha stayed awake and she was by my side, she lay down by my feet and stayed there until I moved. As soon as I moved Sasha would leap up and follow me, even if I was only going to the toilet, we didn't have proper toilets at the mountain we had holes in the ground with fast flowing water that flushed away our waste, the toilets (if they can be called that) are behind wooden doors marked WC, that stands for "water closet".**

 **After the firework display was over there was yet more music and dancing, not much else had been planned as far as I knew. I was getting bored and I didn't really know how to entertain myself. The guests seemed to be enjoying themselves but I wasn't really feeling the vibe. The music was slow and not to my taste, I didn't know how to dance any of the dances that were taking place either. In the end I sat down and watched everybody else, this was not my idea of a party at all.**

 **I confided in Gavnur and I told him how I was feeling about the whole occasion, I looked amazing but I didn't feel amazing.**

 **"There is more fun to come, you have to open your gifts next." Gavnur told me.**

 **"I've got gifts?" I asked, I was surprised.**

 **"Only a few things, you did say that you wanted this occasion to feel a bit more like a wedding so you've got wedding presants." Gavnur explained.**

 **"Oh OK, I'll look forward to opening those then. I hope the guests haven't spoilt me too much, I wasn't expecting anything to be honest." I replied.**

 **"After this band has finished playing their last song you can open your gifts." Gavnur revealed.**

 **"That sounds like fun, are the gifts only for me?" I queried.**

 **"I think so. Larten told the clan not to buy him anything because he has everything he needs, that's what he told us. The Cirque Du Freak members are the ones who have bought you the most, vampires don't really give out gifts. It isn't the vampire way. You are lucky that Larten has given you presants in the past, not many vampires buy presants for their mates. Most vampires tend to take their mates out hunting, sometimes they might travel somewhere together if they don't want to stay in the mountain but that's about it." Gavnur responded.**

 **"I take it then that vampires don't do romance either, I'm the same. I hate all that sentimental, over the top slushy stuff too, it is completely unecessary in my view." I told Gavnur.**

 **"Despite that you still wanted a blessed mateship ceremony that felt similar to a human wedding?" Gavnur asked me.**

 **"It is about time that Larten made an honest vampiress out of me so to speak." I grinned.**

 **"That is true, I mean in your situation it makes a lot of sense and you two make a great couple, you suit each other and you make each other happy which is the main thing." Gavnur stated.**

 **"I do try to make Larten happy, I am always by his side and we support each other emotionally too. Larten has saved my life more than once. I fell in love with him, I couldn't help it either. Larten is very good looking, he knows how to treat a vampiress right and he is the best lover I've ever known, the things he does to my body are out of this world." I confided in Gavnur quietly.**

 **"I can imagine, I've heard you in your quarters when I was walking down that same tunnel and it is clear that he knows how to satisfy you." Gavnur whispered in my ear.**

 **"You're right, I mean I try to control myself but I can't. Larten is just too good and when he sends me over the edge I can't help but cry out for more. It feels like I've entered Paradise whilst still being alive if that makes sense." I explained to Gavnur.**

 **"Yes, it makes perfect sense. I'll never be able to do that but I'm not too bad. I can satisfy women but I'm unable to make them experience really good orgasms no matter how hard I try." Gavnur sighed.**

 **"It takes time and practice, it also requires skill and a fair amount of knowledge." I said.**

 **"I know that, I just need to practice more often than I do." Gavnur said decisively.**

 **"If that's the case then find yourself a mate and practice as often as you like." I suggested.**

 **"That's what I've been trying to do, it isn't that simple Anna. All of the vampiresses here are spoken for and I'm not going to blood somebody unless they're certain that its what they want. As you know becoming a vampiress isn't very pleasant and many things can go wrong to say the least." Gavnur reiterated.**

 **"Becoming a vampiress has been a thrilling adventure at points but at the same time I've had to fight for my life, goodness knows how I've managed to survive." I stated.**

 **"I understand how you feel. There are positives and negatives to being in the clan, hopefully the negatives outweigh the positives." Gavnur remarked.**

 **"Yes, the positives do outweigh the negatives, at least for me anyway. I cannot speak for anybody else." I confirmed.**

 **"You'll be fine Anna, you've got Larten by your side and I know that he won't allow anything bad to happen to you. I won't let anything bad happen to you either, I'll always look out for you and step in if it is necessary, however with Larten around you shouldn't have any trouble at all." Gavnur concluded, the band had just finished their last song and now it was time for me to open my presants.**

 **This was the highlight of my evening, I was dying to see what my friends at the Cirque Du Freak had bought for me as wedding gifts, although strictly speaking this wasn't a wedding. I sat down and the gifts were brought to me one by one. Gavnur gave me his gift first, he gave me a long spear that could be used in battle. Vampires don't use any form of missile but spears don't have to be thrown, they are often used to keep a safe distance between yourself and your enemies.**

 **"Thank you Gavnur, don't take this the wrong way but I hope I'll never have cause to use it." I said gratefully. I placed the spear in its case and I opened the next presant. The next presant was from Seba, he gave me my own flask that I could use to store blood in if I was making a long journey.**

 **"This will be very useful, I love the engraving on it too. Thank you Seba." I commented.**

 **"You are welcome Anna." Seba replied before he handed me the next presant. The next presant was a joint gift from everybody at the Cirque Du Freak, I nearly fell off my chair when I saw it. The Cirque Du Freak had put all of their money together to buy me a pair of shoes by Jimmy Choo.**

 **"Wow, you guys really are too generous by half. I'll have to make sure that the wolves don't chew on these shoes. Thanks so much everybody." I announced to the gathered Cirque Du Freak members. Next came the presant from Mr Tiny, I was scared to open it. The gift from Mr Tiny was a watch that was like his except it not only told you the time but it also told you what season it was and it also showed the weather forecast on separate dials around the edge of the face.**

 **"Thank you Mr Tiny, this watch will be very useful to me when I'm planning trips into the wilderness." I remarked graciously.**

 **"It was either a watch or the heart of a child, I chose the watch." Mr Tiny said with a wicked grin.**

 **"You definately made the right choice." I acknowledged.**

 **Next up was the gift from Lady Evanna, she gave me my own set of fold-away cooking pots and trays. This way I wouldn't have to borrow Larten's set again.**

 **"Thank you, these pots will make my life a lot easier." I stated.**

 **"I thought as much." Lady Evanna replied.**

 **After Lady Evanna here was a gift from Larten. I opened the package that was tied with a ribbon and it contained a cloak, it was trimmed with fur and it fitted me like a dream when I tried it on.**

 **"Thank you so much, you didn't have to give me anything because you've already given me so many presants." I said to Larten.**

 **"I thought you would like a cloak of your own that actually fits you, mine are of course far too big so I had this cloak made for you. It is actually made from one of my best cloaks, however this one was cut until it became small enough. You are much shorter than I am after all. This way you will still be wearing one of my cloaks, however it will not drag along the ground or swamp you in yards of material. The fur trim was added after the cloak had been adjusted to fit you." Larten revealed.**

 **"You actually sacrificed one of your best cloaks so that I would have one of my own?" I asked, I was shocked.**

 **"Of course, I know how much you like having my cloaks wrapped around you, now you can wear this instead and the fur will keep you warm." Larten replied.**

 **"Yes, the fur trim is a lovely addition." I acknowledged.**

 **The next gift came from the Princes, it was from all of them. I opened the box and inside it was what looked like some more weapons but I was unfamiliar with them.**

 **"Thank you Sires but what are they?" I queried.**

 **"They are Shurikens, they are my weapon of choice and I will teach you how to use them. You throw them in a specific way to kill your enemies without getting too close to them. They are re-usable as well. They were invented by the Japanese and Ninjas used to use them." Prince Vancha explained to me.**

 **"Oh right, I think I've seen some hanging up on the wall in the Halls of Sport but I never got around to asking about them." I responded as I examined the Shurikens more closely. They looked lethal to me and they were razor sharp too. Prince Vancha showed me how to hold them without cutting myself to ribbons, at the bottom of the box that the Shurikens had come in was a belt and some leather pouches.**

 **"The belt is used for storage and transportation of these Shurikens, the pouches attach to the belt and the Shurikens are stored inside the pouches. I am not wearing mine at the moment because I have no need to, however when I'm out in the wilderness or on the battlefield I always wear it." Prince Vancha told me as I examined the Shuriken Belt. It was a little bit big for me when I tried it on but a couple of extra holes sorted that problem out. After I had put the Shurikens carefully into their pouches I placed the belt and the pouches alongside the other gifts that I'd received. The last presant that I received was a gift from Vanez Blaine.**

 **"I'd not open it here, save it until you are on your own." Vanez told me just before I opened the package.**

 **"Oh OK. That sounds ominous." I replied.**

 **"Trust me, you'll thank me for the warning when you see what it is." Vanez reassured me.**

 **"OK, I understand. Thank you Vanez for your gift, I'll go to my quarters and open it now." I remarked.**

 **"That would be the best option and you're welcome." Vanez concluded.**

 **I left the Hall of Ceremonies and headed along the tunnel until I reached my quarters. I was eager to find out exactly what Vanez had bought for me. I sat down in the armchair that was by the fire and I opened the package. I used the light from the fire to see clearly, my quarters were dark as the torches on the walls hadn't been lit. I held up the gift that Vanez had bought me, then I understood why he told me to open it on my own. Vanez had bought me some kind of lingerie, it was red, lacey and very revealing. There was a note in the package that I read, it said;**

 **To Anna,**

 **I thought you might like something to wear when you're alone with Larten, this outfit is to be worn after the celebrations are over if you get my meaning. I just hope that these garments fit you, I don't know your size.**

 **I wish you all the best, you deserve to be happy. Both of you have been through a lot, it is good that you've found each other.**

 **Have fun...**

 **I was a little bit embarrased, I didn't quite know what to make of Vanez's gift but I would try the garments on later just out of curiousity. I wondered what Larten would say when he saw me wearing them, there was only one way to find out but it'd have to wait until the celebrations were over.**

 **I went back into the Hall of Ceremonies, I was a little bit red but I did my best to control myself. I saw Vanez and we just looked at each other knowingly, I didn't need to say anything to him. Larten came over to where I was sitting at the high table and he sat down next to me.**

 **"What did Vanez buy for you?" Larten asked me.**

 **"I'm not sure that I can tell you, I think it is meant to be a surprise for when we're alone." I replied.**

 **"I see, talking of which when exactly are we going to be alone?" Larten queried.**

 **"I thought that we would go to our special quarters after the celebrations are over, I don't know what else is in store." I stated.**

 **"There are not many things planned, the musicians will play until the guests have left. You can have your cake if you like, I will go and get it for you." Larten responded.**

 **"Yes, I would like a piece of cake." I acknowledged so Larten went to fetch the cake that Mr Tall had arranged for me.**

 **I was really looking forward to eating the cake, I had been craving chocolate cake for a long time because I hadn't eaten any form of human food in ages. I had been living on meat, fish, nuts and fruit for meals as that was readily available in the mountain all year round. We had bread that was freshly made on a nightly basis and a few other things but they were in short supply.**

 **Larten brought me my cake and my jaw dropped when I saw it. I cut myself a slice, I ate it and it tasted out of this world, whoever made the cake had got it spot on. The cake was three tiers high, I didn't know how I was going to eat it all. I had been expecting a mini cake that was just big enough for myself but I had been presented with this three tier masterpiece. The cake was covered in white icing, it had red roses and other decorations on it but the cake itself was pure chocolate paradise. It had cream and ganache in the middle of it and a miniture bride and groom on the top of it, it looked exactly like a wedding cake should look.**

 **"How do you like your cake?" Larten asked me as I helped myself to a second piece of the first tier.**

 **"It is perfect, it looks like a wedding cake, it tastes like paradise and it is all mine." I replied between mouthfuls of chocolate and fondent icing.**

 **"I think that Hibernious has outdone himself once again, I asked him to organise a cake for you but I never expected this to be the cake that he created. How on Earth are you going to eat it all?" Larten asked me.**

 **"I'll just eat a couple of slices a night and if anybody wants a slice then I'll share it out between them." I explained.**

 **"I think that is a wise idea, too much of something can be just as bad as not enough of something." Larten quoted.**

 **"I agree, I think that two pieces is enough for me. I'm really full up now. You've got a whole boar to eat, can you manage a whole boar?" I asked Larten.**

 **"I will eat it over the next couple of nights, I am sure that Gavnur and Seba will get their fair share too, after all they found it, killed it and prepared it. The kitchen staff just cooked it." Larten replied.**

 **"Is there a place to store my cake so that it will be kept fresh?" I queried.**

 **"We have a cold storeroom where we hang the meat carcasses up, the meat stays fresh until it is ready for cooking so your cake should be fine in there." Larten revealed.**

 **"Alright, put it in the cold storeroom but put a cover over it so that the meat won't contaminate it in any way." I instructed.**

 **"I will see what I can do. I will put it as far away from the meat as possible." Larten remarked as he picked up the cake and disappeared with it.**

 **I sat at the high table and listened to the music, the band was pretty good. They were better than the other bands that had played earlier on in the evening. I noticed that most of the Cirque Du Freak members had gone to bed, Mr Tiny was still around. He had been drinking whiskey so I avoided him, people who drink whiskey often have a lot of issues. Lady Evanna had also gone to bed, the only remaining guests were the Princes and a few of the clan members, of course to them it was still reasonably early being nocturnal and all. I was tired but I didn't let it show.**

 **Larten appeared by my side in a flash, he always did this. One minute I'd be sitting alone and the next Larten would be right next to me. Even when we weren't together Larten was never far away from me, I could always find him if I needed him to help me with something.**

 **"I'm tired, I need to rest. It has been a long night." I said to Larten.**

 **"It is early, we have a good four hours until the sun rises and even then the sun cannot harm us whilst we are within these halls." Larten stated.**

 **"I understand that but I need to rest or I'll have no energy for when I need it the most." I replied.**

 **"If you want to you can go and get some sleep, the guests will probably leave when we do unless they are enjoying the music." Larten stated.**

 **"I don't want to cut their party short, I'll just snuggle into you for a while. I'm sure that we'll figure something out, I have after all put myself into some rather unusual sleeping positions before." I said before I yawned and pulled Larten closer to me.**

 **I had my head resting on Larten's shoulder and he had his arm around my waist, eventually Larten whispered in my ear that the music had finished and that the hall was almost empty of guests. At that point I decided that it was time for us to retire to our quarters. I stood up, stretched a little bit and pulled my veil up for it had fallen back down over my face. I moved my chair backwards to give me room to walk out from behind the high table.**

 **My dress was long and quite puffy at the bottom so I had to pick it up before I walked anywhere, otherwise the bottom of the dress would touch the ground. I didn't want the bottom of it getting marked or dirty, I wanted to keep it in pristine condition.**

 **When we were in the corridor Larten scooped me up into his arms "bridal style" and he carried me off to where we would be spending the day together. I was a little bit apprehensive because I didn't know what Larten had planned. I knew that we'd mate for certain but I wasn't sure how intense it was going to be.**

 **Before anything like that took place I wanted to take off my dress and put on the lingerie that Vanez had bought for me. I was curious as to whether it would suit me or not, I wasn't used to wearing lingerie. It wasn't something that I'd ever thought of doing because it didn't matter to Larten what underwear I had on.**

 **When we arrived at our designated, specially designed quarters Larten opened the heavy, wooden door and we stepped inside. As quarters go these ones were big, we had our coffin in the centre of the room, there were beams above it that held the curtains in place. I'd never thought about having curtains around a coffin before, however I guessed that it was instead of having a four poster bed. I asked Larten to help me remove my dress because it was laced up at the back, when he had unlaced it I stepped out of it and hung it up so that it wouldn't get damaged. I removed my tiara, took my hair down, brushed it through and then I removed my make-up. I removed all of my jewellery except for my rings and then I replaced my underwear with the lingerie that I had been given.**

 **Larten got himself undressed and he also hung up his suit, he placed his top hat inside the wardrobe on a shelf as it couldn't be hung up and then he stood infront of me wearing nothing but his boxer shorts. I looked at Larten, his body was muscular but terribly scarred. I was turned on by his six pack, I loved seeing him flex his abs, they were well defined and not hard to miss. The best bit about it was that I was able to touch Larten's abs, I could run my hands all over them if I wanted to and of course Larten would let me do so. Instead I settled upon kissing him, I wasn't very tall so quite often I was on tiptoes when we kissed, it was either that or I wore high heeled boots whenever I stood next to Larten. On rare occasions he would put his hands around my waist and lift me off the ground then our heads would be level, this made kissing Larten much easier, not that we kissed in public very often as it wasn't really seen as appropriate behaviour.**

 **We kissed for a long time, it felt different too. It wasn't as fast or as lust-filled as it would be normally, this kiss felt deeper but on an emotional level. We stayed connected for ages, our tongues danced in each other's mouths. It was just the prelude to what was coming next, Larten broke the kiss and then he held me in his arms for a very long time.**

 **I looked up at Larten and he looked down at me, his eyes were almost hypnotic. They were blue-green in colour so they reminded me of a deep pool and the ocean. I dared to look into Larten's eyes for longer than I normally would, I was his blessed mate after all and I loved how they shon in the torchlight like two sapphires.**

 **"What are you thinking about my love?" Larten asked me.**

 **"Nothing much, I was just thinking about how your eyes remind me of the ocean because of their colour. I was also wondering if you're going to blood me again like you said you would." I replied.**

 **"I was thinking about it,**


End file.
